The Chaos Trilogy 2: A Broken Heart
by Dark Marx Soul
Summary: With the Void opened once again, Dimentio has the upper hand. However, the Chaos Heart is broken and lies in two vessels: Dimentio and Fawful, former allies turned enemies. The Chaos Heart lies in them both, but only one can have it all.
1. Chapter 1: Game Start

_**The Chaos Trilogy ~A Super Mario Fanfic~**_

_**Part 2: A Broken Heart**_

Chapter 1: Game Start

Fawful

_Tremors shook Castle Bleck to its core, Fawful's large teeth rattling in his mouth. He curled up on the floor, tiny fists clenched; what was going to happen to him?_

_A shockwave of dark energy blasted through him and all the other occupants of the castle, and Fawful was sent rolling, gripping the black floor with his fingers._

_'You...WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?' Dimentio's horrified scream echoed through the room as he looked back and forth from the Chaos Heart, split into two halves, and Blumiere, who had brought his sceptre down upon the artefact to make it so. Fawful got up, his Headgear Mk. III gnashing its steel jaws, ready to attack._

_The last thing he saw was one half of the Chaos Heart collide with Dimentio's chest, sending him flying._

_He blacked out the moment the other half hit him._

_He was nothing. All around him was blackness. He heard nothing. He felt nothing. He could think of nothing._

'Fawful...'

_His mind snapped to attention and he was aware of himself looking around frantically._ 'Cackletta!' _he called out._

'Fawful...'

'Cackletta, your toady is here!' _he yelled, though not knowing where "here" was._

'Fawful...don't let the darkness...consume you...'

_A rush of white light passed over his eyes._

'CACKLETTA!' he screamed, throwing his head up.

He breathed deeply, sweating. So, it had been a dream. Looking around, he saw that he was in a very strange place. He sat on hard, beige coloured bricks, gates put up all around the section of the area, giving a closed in feeling. Houses lined the sides of the area, some made of wood, some of stone. Ancient looking grey pillars stood tall, leafy vines curling around them, making their way up to the underside of another floor. It seemed to be in a little, tan bubble, odd geometric cubes and symbols floating around here and there.

Fawful was perplexed. 'Hm...oddness. What kind of dimension is Fawful sitting in?'

'Actually,' replied a voice from behind him. Fawful spun around hastily to be met with the concerned face of Mimi. 'It's a place _between_ dimensions.'

'M-Mimi!' Fawful exclaimed, leaping to his feet, blushing slightly. His heart felt warm and happy; an odd feeling for a villain. 'I have joy at the sighting of you, like many hungry puppies at the sighting of a juicy steak!'

'Tee hee hee!' Mimi giggled. 'It's nice to see you too Fawfie.'

'Um...Fawful is...um, that is to say...' He looked down, his heart pounding.

'Yeah?'

'I have apologies for the ignoring of your suffering, in the Castle of Bleckness.'

'Oh Fawful, it's okay!' Mimi stressed. 'Water under the bridge, ya know?'

'I HAVE MORE JOY!' Fawful screamed, his heart rising. Mimi giggled again. 'I have confusion. Where are we being?'

'Oh here? This is the place between dimensions. The Count always talked about it. It's called Flipside. He says there's a place right next to it called Flopside too, where everything is reversed.'

'I still have confusion...'

'Yeah, it's a weird thing to think about.'

A short moment of silence passed. 'So...um...what is happening with you?' he asked, desperate to say _something._

'Me? I'm bushed,' she huffed. 'Battling with Dimentio really takes it out of you, even if you do have others helping.' She stopped, suddenly remembering something. 'Fawful!'

'Yes, what?' He jumped.

'You've been unconscious for a while now, so you probably have no idea what's happening!'

'No, Fawful does not.

'Well, I guess I'll explain. After fighting with Dimentio, the Count...um, I mean, Blumiere broke the Chaos Heart in half with his sceptre, and one half flew to Dimentio, and the other one flew to you. You were unconscious the second it hit you. As for Dimentio, he was still conscious, and called upon the Chaos Heart to push the Void into the dimensions.' She shuttered.

'What?' Fawful demanded, concerned. 'What is being the matter?'

'It was...so creepy. When he used the Heart, you just...hung there, in the air, like a doll. It was so terrible...' Fawful shuttered too; he couldn't remember anything after he was knocked out, but the thought wasn't pleasant. 'After it was done, you fell to the ground and Mario sent us all back here with this pipe thing.'

'The red mustache!' Fawful exclaimed, rage immediately boiling over the rest of his emotions. 'He is here?'

'Well yeah.'

'I HAVE FURY! Fawful shall wipe the floor with his mustached face!' He stomped off.

'Fawful, don't!'

He looked back. 'Fawful will be having his revenge!'

'No, please, don't...' Mimi pleaded. Something in the voice and face of that girl made his heart sink, and he halted. 'He...he wouldn't leave without you. He made Bowser go back and get you.'

Fawful was certainly surprised. 'R-really?' he asked.

'Yeah, no joke!' Mimi replied. 'He was gonna just stand there unless you came along.'

'I have regret...' Fawful muttered. 'And bother, I have much bother!'

'Huh?' Mimi sounded surprised. 'Why?'

'Now Fawful will have to be paying him back!' he snorted. 'Unless Fawful is wanting the guilt.'

'Aren't you a villain? It shouldn't matter to you.'

'Well it is mattering much to Fawful. Fawful will have much guilt if he does not help the mustache after he had the saving of Fawful. He had no need, and I am his enemy of wickedness, and he still had the saving...bah!'

'Speaking of which, I think you should go say hi to the rest of the gang.'

Fawful blinked. '"The gang?"'

'Yeah. Mario, Luigi, Peach, Bowser, and Blumiere and the rest of us.'

'They are all being here?'

'Yep. Discussing the plan with Merlon.'

'What plan?'

'The plan to stop _that_.' Mimi pointed to the sky. Fawful looked up to see a black, swirling mass hovering ominously in the air. 'The Void; the thing that, if we let it get too big, will destroy all worlds, and us with them.'

'Wowing!' Fawful exclaimed. 'Fawful was underestimating that clown.' He paused. 'But only a bit of littleness.'

'Oh, Fawful...?' Mimi muttered.

Fawful's attention turned to Mimi. 'Yes?'

'Why did you save me? From Dimentio?'

'Why did Fawful...'

He remembered. He remembered Dimentio flying at Mimi. He remembered knocking Mimi out of the way, a magical blast sending copious amounts of pain through him, and Dimentio gripping him by the front of his collar.

'Fawful saved you, because he didn't want harm to befall you.' Fawful was suddenly very hot and nervous; he wished he knew more about all these...feelings.

'But why? Why did you care?'

'Because Fawful is caring about you!' he exclaimed.

Mimi stared at him, surprised. 'Um...wow...' she said.

'Fawful apologizes again...' Why couldn't he have just controlled himself?

'No, it's okay.' She smiled. 'Come on, let's go and see them. Merlon's house is just down this way.'

The door to Merlon's house opened. 'Guys, I'm back!' Mimi called.

'Oh, Mimi!' an elderly voice, which Fawful took to be Merlon's, answered. 'Come in, we're discussing something of great importance!'

Mimi entered. 'Oh,' she added, as the Beanish boy walked in. 'Fawful's awake.'

Everyone's gazes were hostile; Fawful was on good terms with no one. 'Um...' Fawful said as he followed Mimi inside. 'Fawful says hello to you all.'

'Hello Fawful,' Peach said wearily, with a forced smile. 'Finally awake?'

'Yes,' he answered.

'You aren't gonna, you know, try and blow us up or anything, right?' Luigi asked.

'I have hurt!' Fawful yelled. 'Fawful thinks that we are sharing a common enemy, yes?'

'That doesn't mean we aren't your enemies,' Mario noted.

Fawful scowled. 'You are having much correctness!' Fawful said. 'All Fawful is wanting is to be leaving you, and Fawful will pay you back for saving him with his absence!'

Mario shook his head. 'No. I can't leave you alone. Dimentio will be gunning for you, as well as us. In fact, you're probably higher up on his hit list than we are.' Fawful snorted. 'You should stay with us.'

'How are you knowing that Fawful will not have the killing of you in your sleep?' the boy asked?

'Because, we share a common enemy, as you said, and you and I both know that we need all the help we can get.' When Fawful just snorted again, he added, 'And I trust you.'

Fawful choked on his own spit. 'Wh...what did you have saying?' he sputtered.

'I trust you,' the plumber repeated.

Fawful was absolutely speechless. Mario? Trust _him_? Fawful? Fawful was his enemy! Why would Mario trust him?

'Mario is right,' Blumiere said, adjusting his monocle. 'You're in a lot of danger, and it would be wrong to just leave you.'

'Fawful is a villain,' the Bean reminded them.

'Are you _really?_' Blumiere questioned. 'Or are you just a good person who hasn't found his way yet? You're young. You have a lot of life left in you. You could change.'

Fawful snorted, but he was slightly moved by this display. 'Fining,' he spat. 'Fawful will be accompanying you fink-rats.'

'Hey, listen buddy!' Bowser snarled.

'Bowser!' Peach exclaimed.

'QUIET!' Everyone went quiet and looked at Nastasia. 'This argument is over! Now all of you will shut up and listen to Merlon, K?' Everyone turned to Merlon.

'Uh...' he said, open-mouthed. '_AHERM!_' He cleared his throat. 'Well, you see, the Void is in the sky once more, and we need to stop it.'

'Yeah, we kinda figured that one out,' Bowser said sarcastically.

'_And_, more specifically, we need to find a way _to_ stop it.'

'Well, what about the Pure Hearts?' Luigi suggested. 'They worked the first time, why not now?' Merlon was silent. 'Well? Don't we already have them all?'

'Erm...well...' Merlon muttered.

'What? What is it?' Timpani demanded.

'Well...you see...'

'Out with it you old coot!' Bowser growled.

Merlon gave a start. 'Well w-we don't have them here!' he stuttered.

Silence.

'What do you mean we "don't have them here?"' Mario questioned slowly.

'In that last incident involving the Chaos Heart, we used the Pure Hearts to banish it, erasing it from existence. Unfortunately...' He gulped. 'We also banished the Pure Hearts in the process. They no longer exist.'

The entire house went into an uproar.

'WHAT?' Mario exclaimed.

'How can they be gone?' Luigi yelled.

''Ow are we goin' teh stop tha' crazy jester now?' O'Chunks shouted.

'QUIEEEEET!' Nastasia screamed. Everyone was quiet once more, and Fawful, who had put his hands to his ears, slowly let his arms down.

'Thank you Nastasia,' Blumiere said. He eyed everyone in the room, and Fawful shivered as his gaze passed over him. He looked at Merlon. 'What do you mean, the Pure Hearts are gone? Even today I saw one in a Heart Pillar.'

'Ah, yes...' the Ancient puffed. 'The Pillars that are the keys to open the doors to the Pure Hearts' dimensions. Well, I was confused as well, but it seems the "Pure Hearts" in the pillars are simply...er, "impressions" of the Hearts, as you will. They left some of the power of the Hearts in the Pillars, which keep the doors on Flipside and Flopside Tower there, but the Pure Hearts themselves are gone.'

Silence again. Fawful felt very left out of the conversation; not only did he know very little about the Chaos Heart, but he knew absolutely nothing about everything else they were talking about.

'I see...' Blumiere replied. 'That makes sense to me.'

'So you see, we have no way of stopping the Chaos Heart,' Merlon concluded sadly.

'Wait,' Mario offered. 'Couldn't we—'

'Excusing me,' Fawful cut in. Everyone looked at him. 'Fawful is wanting to know what these Hearts of Pureness are.'

'Oh, you don't know?' Merlon asked, surprised. 'I would have thought Dimentio would have told you.' Fawful shook his head; the jester had never told him anything of the sort. 'Well then, I'll start from the beginning:

'Thousands of years ago...about 4000-3000 years, in that time range, there existed a civilization known as the Tribe of the Ancients, which prided itself in its magical abilities and citizens of the pure of heart. All our magic centred around the good, pure feelings of the heart, and we were romanticised as sages who could do anything, although that was a little bit of a stretch. That would mean we could bring back the dead, which is next to impossible.'

'1up Mushrooms can do that,' Luigi cut in.

'Yeah,' Bowser added. 'How do you think I keep coming back to steal Peach?'

'MAKE WITH THE UP SHUT!' Fawful shouted. 'FAWFUL IS LEARNING.'

'Er...ahem!' Merlon coughed. 'So, where was I...?

'In any case, even in a civilization such as ours, there ours always bad seeds, going against society. Nothing too bad, usually, but still, there was always something. Eventually, however, an anonymous individual wrote a book known as the "Dark Prognosticus." One person visited our kingdom with the book, saying it held grand visions of the future. People, their curiosity piqued by these words, read the book, wanting to know their futures. They didn't read anything they liked. The book held horrifying secrets, dark power and visions of destruction and despair. Most people of pure heart touched the book once, or read one passage, and left it well enough alone, but those who meddled in dark magic, the black sheep of the people, read it in detail, basking in the magic, however terrible the visions were. These people found the traveller who came to the kingdom, and demanded he tell them the meaning of these visions. He told them that it was destiny that the worlds be destroyed, and in their place, a new, perfect world would be created. These people took delight in his words, and he told them that they could be independent, publically using their preferred brands of magic without fear of the other people. Word spread, and all those who wanted to left the Tribe of the Ancients with this individual, who called himself "Esteban." Together, they formed the "Tribe of Darkness," with Esteban as their king.'

Fawful was listening intently. He adjusted his glasses. 'Fawful has understanding,' he said. 'The one who is being called Esteban is also the one who is called "Ganter," yes?'

'That is correct,' Merlon answered. 'Dimentio freed Ganter, and after a lot of searching, found the Tribe of Ancients. He instructed Ganter to go in with the book and show it to the citizens, knowing full well that those who had evil in their hearts would take the bait and follow him. It was at that time that he used the alias Esteban to hide his identity. Dimentio promised him a place as the king of a perfect race, and a king he was.'

'Fawful is seeing...'

'Now, to continue...

'The Dark Prognosticus had been read...or, skimmed, really, in full by some of pure hearts, and thought it foretold very dire things. It said that the marriage of a fair princess and a monster king would create the Chaos Heart. The Dark One would use the Chaos Heart's power to bring forth the Void, which would bring about the destruction of all worlds. Four Heroes would rise to stop the Dark One, but one of the Heroes, a "neutral force," if you will, would succumb to the Chaos Heart's power and bring darkness to all, destroying the worlds. These four Heroes were Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, and King Bowser.' Fawful smirked; he was in no way surprised. Peach and Bowser would have been the princess and monster king...and he guessed that Luigi would be the neutral force. Mario seemed like the kind to just fight and win, so he couldn't be it. 'Fearing that this outcome was true, the Tribe of Ancients called upon their most powerful sorcerers, who banded together and wrote an equally powerful prophecy known as the "Light Prognosticus," to counter the dark one. It foretold that the marriage of a fair princess and monster king would bring forth the Chaos Heart, just like the dark one, but it said that the Heroes would defeat the Dark One and banish the Chaos Heart, despite there still being a neutral force in the party. They would do this by using an artefact known as the "Purity Heart," which was a powerful item made with the power of love and light magic, as opposed to the Chaos Heart, which was made from hatred and negative emotions, and dark magic. So, we created the Purity Heart with our powers, and split it into eight pieces and hid them, so that evil forces could not find them. We called these pieces the eight Pure Hearts. Time passed and—'

'Merlon,' Blumiere cut in.

Merlon turned around and looked at him. 'Yes?'

'I believe that I am better suited to tell this next part of the tale.'

Merlon nodded. 'Very well, you may take it from here.'

'Okay then,' Blumiere said. 'Where to start...?

'Time passed from when Esteban had established a kingdom. Thousands of years, to be more specific. Our kingdom thrived, and life was good. In that time, he chose a queen, and had a single child. He named it...Blumiere. Me.' Fawful raised his eyebrows, but he wasn't surprised much. He simply continued listening. 'For my entire life, I was fed prejudice lies about the humans living in the village across from our kingdom. At this point, we had "evolved" from humans under the Dark Prognosticus' power, which was kept in a room in our castle, and we had grown to look as I do today. We were no longer human. After a dispute with my father, I went for a walk around the outskirts of my kingdom, to walk off some frustration. I was standing on the edge of a cliff, enjoying the view, when a human girl ran up to me and told me to be careful. Irritated, I ignored her. Unfortunately, this was a bad decision as the ground under my feet broke off and I was sent tumbling down to the valley below. When I woke up later, the human girl, was caring for me. Her name was Timpani, and is the fine lady you see here with me.' Timpani blushed and giggled. 'As time passed, we developed a relationship. My father found out.' He sighed. 'He sent her away to another dimension, to wander it forever. In my grief and rage, I took the Dark Prognosticus and destroyed the dimension, and my father with it, and became Count Bleck, the Destroyer of Worlds. In my travels, I found Nastasia, Mimi, and O'Chunks, and they were to help me in my plan. I told them I was going to destroy all worlds and make perfect new ones...but I lied. My plan was to leave it all in ruin. I was...a fool.'

'So, the Heroes had the stopping of you?' Fawful asked?

'They did, and they showed much bravery,' Blumiere replied.

'Waiting...' Fawful remembered something. 'When did the jester of stupid come in?'

'Dimentio was to be my final minion, though I didn't know it yet. He found me himself, and told me that I needed his services. I said no, and turned him away. Later, I read a very specific passage in the Prognosticus that spoke of a person very similar, if not exactly, to him. So I found him and demanded that he join. He did, without a second thought. In the end, he betrayed me and took the Chaos Heart, using Luigi, the neutral force, and himself to try and kill us. He was defeated by the Heroes, and died. We banished the Chaos Heart with the Pure Hearts, and they were all erased from existence, and Timpani and I were brought to another dimension, just us two. When you and Dimentio came back to life, the shock in the dimensions was enough to bring us to the Heroes' dimension. Now, it turns out Dimentio wrote the Prognosticus...and now the rest is happening as we speak.'

There was a moment of silence as everyone let the little Bean absorb this information. 'Fawful sees. Fawful has understanding.' This was so much to comprehend, and he was right in the middle of it. His head spun just thinking about it.

'So you see, it is of much importance that you join us, as we need as much help as possible,' Merlon said.

'Fawful has already told you, he will be joining you,' he spat, slightly irritated at repeating himself.

'So, now that he's caught up, what should we do?' Luigi asked.

'Well, I was thinking,' Mario offered, 'that we should create another Purity Heart.'

'Create _another_ one?' Merlon repeated, mouth open. 'It took enough work the first time! A few of us nearly died! Where will we find the people to create it?'

'Well, the Mushroom Kingdom has a lot of powerful objects and people. We should start there.'

'It sounds like a plan,' Peach said, a determined look on her face.

'I'll transport you there,' Merlon said. 'Unfortunately, I am unable to bring you to a specific location, as I have never been there, but it's a start.'

'Well what are we waiting for?' Bowser snorted. 'Come on, gramps! Make with the transporting!'

'Hmph!' Merlon huffed. 'And here I thought people respected their elders!' He waved his hands in the air. Fawful gulped; what had he gotten himself into? 'Farewell Heroes!' Merlon beamed. 'May your travels yield results!'

A 2D box surrounded each of them and they flipped out of Flipside and into the Mushroom World.

A new adventure had begun.


	2. Chapter 2: Playing God

Chapter 2: Playing God

Dimentio

_The Chaos Heart, flying into his chest, his own heart..._

His heart hammered heavily as he thought of the scene.

_Soaring through the air, slamming into the wall of the room..._

His body ached as he recalled the pain.

_Visions of darkness and death passing through his mind like premonitions..._

A sadistic smile spread across his face as he remembered the views.

_Fawful, the Beanish boy, hanging in the air like a ragdoll..._

The smile disappeared.

Dimentio slung his leg up over his other knee, sitting on an extravagant chair, coloured purple and yellow, like both a king's and a jester's. Tapping his finger's irritably on the arms of his throne, he shook his head. He was dressed in the silky black pants, shirt, gloves and shoes he always wore. His purple and yellow poncho and hat were hung over the back of his throne, his mask lying on a small table. His new, dark blue skin shone in the yellow torchlight from the walls, the sleek, grey stones of the walls reflecting the scene. A comfortable, red carpet covered the floor, creative patterns of yellow weaving this way and that around pictures of his mask, its colours matching the carpet perfectly. Tapestries hung on the walls, depicting various scenes:

A court jester, jumping around playfully for his Majesty, bells jingling from his clothes.

A powerful magician in a purple robe standing on a cliff's edge, staff in hand, lightning flashing in the distance.

A wicked demon, wrapped in rusted chains, coiling around his arms, his legs, his throat.

Two tribes, one light and pure, one dark and foreboding.

A prosperous, familiar kingdom, a grand castle in the distance, green fields in the foreground, blooming with flowers.

Two, black, clawed hands enveloped in shadow, pulling down a beautiful angel...an angel with pink hair and eyes, wearing a flowing lavender dress...

Dimentio swept his black and white hair out of his eyes, feeling it brush the lower part of his neck. This was his ideal castle. All it had taken was a day's worth of magical remodelling, and Castle Bleck was as good as his. Now, it was Castle Dimentio, and in his opinion, looked far better. There was far too much black in Castle Bleck. Even the torch flames. Dimentio could honestly call it a castle now.

He was still frowning. During the Chaos Heart Incident with Count Bleck, Dimentio had never once frowned. Ever. He was always smiling with a sadistic glee, or a smug smirk, or a goofy grin. Everything had been in his control. He had minions under his control, as one of the commanders of Count Bleck's army, he was protected by the Count. He didn't even need to worry about the Heroes beating him. All he had to do was feign defeat and warp away, watching them go on their merry way to get the Pure Hearts. Now...now it was different. He was alone. He had no minions. His plan rested entirely on his shoulders. Visions and people from his past were constantly assaulting his thoughts. Not to mention he only had half of the control of the Chaos Heart.

He groaned. Sure, he had a castle, but now what? The Heroes would surely try and do something to stop him, and what could he do? He was dangerously outnumbered. He had fought every one of them, minus Fawful, before, and he hadn't been in the greatest of shape afterwards. He needed...minions.

_Dimension bending...and the Chaos Heart..._

He jerked up in his chair. That was it! If he couldn't find minions...he would _make_ them.

He put on the rest of his jester attire, his mask changing to match his facial expression, and warped out to Dimension D.

The jester sat on the floor of the small dimension. It was green all over, in different shades. The floor consisted of light green cubic matter, and the walls were simply normal green cubes, with a dark green one here and there. Darker green lines weaved across the walls this way and that, and white pixels dotted the walls as well.

His masked face smiling with excitement, Dimentio looked around his own dimension that he had made. His own, perfect accomplishment. Nothing he had ever done had ever exceeded this. Not until now, at least. His fists clenched, his teeth gritted, he put his hands in front of him and began to move them up and down. As his energy gathered, he took raw dimensional matter and formed it into a shape. A spherical ball. Shaping a neck, then torso, then arms, he began to sculpt out a body. He had tried this numerous times, and failed miserably, but now he had something much more powerful than he on his side. The Chaos Heart might have been broken in half, but it still did what it had done for its entire existence. The Chaos Heart was constantly generating an infinite amount of dark energy. It's just what it was made to do. Only it could force the Void into existence. Therefore, with that infinite amount of energy at his disposal, he figured he could make this work. It couldn't necessarily blink the Heroes off the face of the worlds, or super power Dimentio's attacks, but this, he was certain it could do. Forming the legs and feet, and hands, and the rest of its body, he fashioned the body parts into the way he envisioned them. He slightly narrowed the head, made ears, made the neck just a tad thinner, and made the body all together more muscular. He made a nose and a mouth. Soon enough, the body was done. He used a finger to carve out eyes, nostrils, the holes in his mouth and ears, dark magic flowing from his fingertips. The face looked lethal, malevolent. He put his finger on the top of its head and ran it down his creation's body, exactly down the middle, running down to the floor, then snapped his fingers. Half of the body turned white, and half turned black, just like his mask.

'Perfect...' Dimentio breathed, shaking with excitement. 'Perfect!' His heart beating in his chest, sending waves of dark energy through his body to his hand, he put his palm on the creature's chest, and a ball of darkness went into it. 'Now, all you need is a soul...let's see what happens.' He withdrew his hand.

Nothing happened. Dimentio sat and waited, his heart pounding. He reached under his mask and wiped sweat off of his forehead, giggling uncontrollably. He gripped the green floor in his anticipation; if this succeeded...he would truly be a God! Create life! So many people over the many millennia have tried, and all have failed.

The creature's muscles tightened and tensed. It's hands curled into fists, it's jaw clenched, and its eyes squinted shut. After a moment, it relaxed and opened its sinister eyes, blinking. It tested out its limbs and joints, twisting them every way that was humanly possible (and every way that _wasn't_ as well), craning its neck and cracking its knuckles, knees, arms, and other appendages.

'Greetings, welcome to existence, my wonderful creation!' Dimentio beamed, jumping up ecstatically.

The creature gave an inquisitive stare at its creator, as if it didn't know how to react.

'Well?' Dimentio was impatient now. He tapped his foot. 'What are you waiting for? Speak!'

The creature did nothing.

Dimentio glared, his frustration coming out in a slight giggle. 'As your Master, I command you to speak!'

The creature stared for a moment, then gave a sickening, hacking cough. It doubled over wheezing and coughing all the while. Dimentio stepped back, both shocked and appalled, his face contorted in disgust. What the heck did he do wrong?

After giving one last cough, it stopped and went upright. Staring at the jester, it opened its mouth, letting forth a very odd, unintelligible, growling murmur. Dimentio stepped forward. 'What?' he pressed, trying to get it to say _something_. It just murmured again. Dimentio put a finger to his chin, thinking. 'What is it missing...?' he thought aloud. 'It has a body, a soul...what could it...?'

It hit him.

'AHA!' he shouted, and the creature jumped back in fright. Sparks of purple and yellow magical sparks danced from his fingertips and he advanced towards the creature. It backed away, knowing the magician was up to something. 'I gave you a body...' he said, a grin growing on his face. 'I have you a soul...but you're missing one thing.' He waved his other hand and the creature backed into a invisible wall. 'Intelligence...' Dimentio finished. 'Of my own unique calibre!' Lunging, he pressed his hand to the creature's head.

Dimentio sat on his throne once more, fully dressed in his jester garb, staring at a bad in front of him. On it lay his creation, completely rigid, unmoving. It looked completely dead. Dimentio sighed; impatience wasn't normally something that took hold of him much, but this creature laying in front of him could turn the tide against the Heroes. If it didn't work, he'd be alone. He huffed.

It stirred. Dimentio leaned forward in his chair, feeling suddenly giddy. As the thing tossed and turned, stretching its muscles again, a broad smile grew across the jester's face. He gripped the arms of his throne tightly, laughing to himself, and hoping that he wasn't setting himself up for disappointment. It opened its eyes and sat up, looking around silently. It fixed its eyes on its creator and blinked. They were both silent for a moment. A moment passed and the creature took a breath.

'...Master...' it said.

Dimentio was so surprised and thrilled that he leaped out of his seat, hovering a few feet in the air. 'So you finally speak!' Dimentio cried. 'At last, you are whole, like a sad, depressed hero who suddenly finds his other! You are whole!'

'...whole...' it repeated.

'_Yes,_ you are whole.' The jester gave a grin.

'Why...am I here?' it asked.

'Why, because I wanted you to be!' Dimentio answered. 'You are to assist me in the creation of a perfect world!'

The creature raised an eyebrow. 'Is the world not perfect?' it questioned.

The magician's voice turned sour. 'No, not at all. None of them are.' He floated around his creation. 'Every one of them suffers from faults! War, conflict, social discrimination! All of the citizens are imperfect, suffering from the effects of their emotions. Hate, anger, and jealousy...and _love_.' He spat the last word. 'You are to help me. I will make more like you, and together we will crush anyone who gets in our way. Soon, when the Void swallows all...my perfect world will come to fruition.' He giggled.

'You wish for me to assist you?' the creature said.

Dimentio rounded on his creation, a sick, twisted smile spread across his face. 'YES!' he screamed, excitement reverberating through his body. He had created life! The possibilities for minions were limitless now! The Heroes...those pathetic, "justice" obsessed Heroes...they couldn't stop him now! Not with an entire army on his side! The creature leaped back in surprise. 'With you as my right hand, and many, many other possibilities for other minions, no one will stop me! A perfect world is as good as mine!' He threw back his head. 'AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!' The creature eyed his Master curiously, confused at his bizarre actions. After a few moments, it began to laugh along with him. Dimentio stopped laughing and put his head back down, and so did the creature. 'Now,' he said. 'We have a lot of work to do. Or, I do.'

He turned away, and his grin widened. 'It's time...to build an army!'


	3. Chapter 3: Under Everything

Chapter 3: Under Everything

Fawful

Fawful spun into the familiar dimension he called home: the Mushroom World. His 2D box disappeared and he planted his feet on solid ground. Watching the others flip in as well, he suddenly realized what he had gotten himself into.

He was a Hero now.

His mind was dazed, angry, and confused at the same time. After a lifetime (well, nine years of it) of being raised a villain, he was a hero, a "good guy." He had helped his Mistress with her insidious plot to rule the world, he had gone into hiding due to his reputation, and he had almost taken over the Mushroom Kingdom in his own plot...

And now, his role had been completely and utterly turned around.

He shook his confused head; what was he going to do? Looking up at the sky, seeing a small, dark vortex swirling in the distance, he knew he had to stay with the Mario Bros. and the rest of them, or he wouldn't survive. Dimentio would find him. He bowed his head.

'O Great Cackletta...' he murmured. 'Fawful must give the apologies. He is...nothing now. Not a villain, not a toady...nothing.'

'So!' Mario exclaimed. 'Here we are, the Mushroom Kingdom.'

'Well it's not like we haven't been here before,' Mimi replied.

'I suppose that's true.' Mario looked around. They were standing in a small field, the green grass swaying in the wind. A few white clouds had gathered in the sky, and a small town could be seen in the distance. 'Where do you suppose we start?'

'Well, I dunno wha' you all think, but I got nothin',' O'Chunks confessed.

'Me neither,' Mimi said.

'Neither do I,' Nastasia reinforced. Timpani and Blumiere said the same.

'Well, I guess it's up to us,' Mario said, referring to the Heroes. 'What should we do first?'

'Well...' Peach thought. 'We should gather some allies. The more people we have on our side, the better.'

'That sounds great! I could try and find my old adventuring friends!'

'Yeah!' Luigi exclaimed. 'I could always find my old Waffle Kingdom pals.'

'I doubt anyone I know would hang around with you losers,' Bowser growled.

'Bowser!' Peach scolded.

He winced. 'Sorry!'

'What about you Fawful?' Mimi asked. Fawful stared at the ground. 'Fawful?' She went over and snapped her fingers. 'Fawful?' she yelled.

'GAH!' Fawful jumped ten feet into the air and stumbled. 'Whating?'

'Do you know anyone that could help us?' The shape shifter asked him.

'Er...' Fawful scratched his head. 'No. Fawful is not having any acquaintances anywhere. He is being alone.'

'Oh...' Mimi looked at her feet. 'I'm...sorry to hear that.'

'Do not be worrying your head that is green,' Fawful said, attempting a smile. 'I have had the growing used to it.'

'Well?' Mimi asked, as Mario's and Luigi's Mailbox DSs, upgraded versions of the old Mailbox SP, buzzed and played little tunes. They had played numerous times, and both Bros. took a look at them.

'Hm...' Mario muttered. 'This isn't good! None of them can come!'

'What?' Timpani exclaimed. 'How can they not help?'

'I guess they just got on with their lives. Adventuring with me made them really well known...'

'Ack!' Luigi cried.

'What is it Luigi?' asked the older Bro.

'They...they...they, uh, couldn't make it either,' he sputtered. 'They're, uh, too busy. Yeah...'

Mimi snatched the device out of his hands. 'Gimmie that!' she demanded and looked at the screen. 'Wow! I've never seen so much hate mail in my life!'

Luigi grabbed it back. 'H-hey! I'm sure they're just...having a rough day!'

'_All_ of them?' Mimi smirked.

'Um...yeah.' Luigi gulped and laughed, embarrassed.

'So, let me get this straight...' Bowser said. 'NO ONE'S gonna help you?'

'No, I guess not,' Mario replied.

'Gwa ha ha!' Bowser laughed. 'I should have expected as much from you Zeroes!'

'_You're_ a Hero too Bowser,' Peach reminded him. Bowser ignored her.

'Do _you_ have any ideas then?' Timpani challenged.

'You bet I do! My minions would be happy to help their king!' the Koopa King chuckled.

'Are you sure about that...?' Luigi asked. 'I wouldn't feel good about travelling with a bunch of people that could kill us in our sleep!'

'They won't attack you unless _I_ say so, and I won't. Not while we're...working together.' He growled.

'You'd think you'd be used to it by now,' Mario said.

'Well, I guess we'd better go to Bowser's Castle...again,' Peach sighed.

'Follow me!' the great turtle commanded.

Everyone began walking, and Fawful's gaze had drifted down to the ground again. He stood still, not registering the group's movement. Mimi turned and looked back; seeing him, she ran back and tugged on his cloak. 'Fawful?' she asked.

'Hm?' He looked up and turned around, a dejected look on his face. 'Oh, Mimi! Where are the rest of the Heroes being?'

'On their way, over there.' She pointed.

'Oh! We should make haste!' Fawful ran after them.

'Yeah, exactly what I came over here to tell you...' Mimi ran as well.

The great shadow of Bowser's Castle loomed on the horizon. 'Well!' Bowser beamed. 'Here it is!'

'That is quite a castle,' Blumiere admired. His eyes scanned the great, stony fortress, lava bubbling in the moats throughout. Many bottomless pits (literally bottomless) were dug out in it, which all its residents had to be weary of, lest they suffer an early demise. 'Although it seems more...dangerous than friendly to those living there.'

'Nah, everyone's always fine,' Bowser assured.

'So, uh...do we all just walk in there?' Luigi asked.

'Yeah, sure, if you want to get lynched,' Bowser snorted. 'No one's gonna pay attention to me if you're here. Stay, and I'll go in.'

'Okay then. You're the boss for now,' Mario said.

'HAH!' Bowser pumped his fist in the air. 'You bet your mustache I am!' He marched off.

'Um...excusing me,' Fawful said, getting everyone's attention. 'Fawful is wanting to take a walk, for the easing of stress.'

'Yeah, you probably should,' Peach advised. 'You're most likely more wanted in Bowser's Castle than we are.'

'That is probably being true,' he agreed. 'Fawful will be back soon.' He turned and walked away.

He continued to walk, trying to get his mind off of his confusion. Him, a Hero? He still wasn't used to it, and probably would never be. 'I have much stress!' he shouted. 'Why am I being haunted by these shoes of goodiness?' He stopped and sighed. 'Such stress...' Shaking his head violently, he slumped. 'How can things be getting any less good than it is already being?'

_'Jeez, you just can't stay gone can you?' _a voice called.

Fawful leapt up and immediately readied his Headgear for battle.

Bowser

Bowser opened the doors of his castle and roared loudly. 'MINIOOOOONS!'

Everything in the castle stopped for a moment as every occupant turned to look at Bowser. Then they ran at him. 'BOOOOOOOOOWSEEEEEER!' they all screamed. Bowser was assaulted with a flurry of noise and questions.

'Where'd you go?'

'Did you get kidnapped again?'

'What's the plan?'

'Care for some fried eggs?'

'Minions, your King is back! GWA HA HA!' Bowser laughed in his signature growling way.

'Your evilness?' Kammy Koopa, dressed in her usual purple robe and hat, shoved her way through the crowd of Goombas, Koopas, Shy Guys, and all the other minions to get into Bowser's view. 'You're back?'

'Kammy! _Please_ tell me things were taken care of when I wasn't here!'

'Well, er...you see, your Grouchyness...' she muttered. 'We just have never planned things like this. Who kidnaps the King of the Koopas?'

Bowser smacked his face with a scaled, clawed hand. 'Gah! I can't trust anyone!'

'I never said I didn't try my best!' she defended. 'It was just too...disorganized.'

'GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!' Bowser yelled, spewing fire from his mouth. All his minions scattered. 'Forget it! Listen, I'm gonna be gone for a while, okay? Hold up the fort and all until I return.'

'"Gone?"' the old Magikoopa repeated. 'Why?'

Bowser growled with distaste. 'Another one of those "save the universe" things. Now outta my way you hag! I need to talk with someone!' He shoved her aside and trudged off to the deeper regions of the castle.

Kammy shook her head. 'His Crabbyness has become far too involved with that plumber...' She sighed.

_Thud thud thud!_

Bowser pounded on a door leading into a study. 'Hey!' he bellowed. 'Open up!'

'King Bowser?'

The Koopa King turned to see a generic Magikoopa looking up at him. 'What is it?' Bowser demanded.

'He isn't in at the moment. I thought I should let you know.'

'He's WHAT?' Bowser stopped his foot. 'When is he ever NOT in?'

'Well, perhaps you should wait for him to return.'

'Bah! Forget that, there's no TIME to wait!' Bowser turned. 'I'm going!' He walked towards the exit of Bowser's Castle. 'Hmph!' he snorted. 'Where the heck is he?'

Fawful

Fawful's Headgear rockets shot him up to the air as his assailant conjured a broom and took off after him, their fight in full force. Fawful shot blasts of energy from his helmet and his enemy swerved around them, giving a swing of his golden wand and firing blue magical projectiles. Three shapes circled around the flame-like attacks: a circle, a triangle, and a square. As Fawful weaved to and fro, his Headgear's jaws snapped. He dropped and caught one of the attacks in its jaws, which glowed in the glass containment unit.

An idea sparked in Fawful's big brain. He grinned and caught more and more. His attacker frowned. 'What are you doing?'

'Oh, nothing that is being much of anything,' Fawful answered. He shot at him, catching more projectiles as he flew and smashed Headgear-first into his enemy's stomach. The two of them smashed into the ground, dust and earth flying everywhere. The Headgear turned the Beanish boy to a standing position, the teeth clamped around the other one's chest.

Fawful grinned his wide, toothy grin. His attacker groaned in pain. 'You must have had the knowing, fink-rat,' Fawful said smugly. 'You must have known that I would have the destroying of you one day!'

His assailant clenched his fist around his wand tightly. 'Ha...ha...very...funny!' He shoved the wand into the boy's face and fired. Fawful flew through the air and landed with a loud _thunk!_ He brushed off his blue robes and aimed his wand. 'Now Fawful, I want you to give up while you can.'

'Pah...' Fawful grunted, standing up. 'Whying? What is the silver lining for Fawful then?'

'Lord Bowser might imprison you instead of killing you,' he answered.

Fawful laughed. 'Hahahaha! Yes, righting! I have much relief!' He shot the magical energy he had gathered at his enemy, who was blasted off of his own feet, much like Fawful had been. 'Not!'

Fawful's attacker got up. The two figures stared at each other, panting. 'Stupid...kid...' the attacker gasped.

'Old...nanny!' Fawful shot back.

The attacker threw up his hands. 'For the last time, I am Bowser's _ADVISOR!_'

'Kamek!' Both of them turned. Bowser and the rest of the Heroes ran up to them both. 'What the heck have you been doing?'

'L-Lord Bowser?' Kamek gapped and sank to his knees, gasping. 'Haah...haah...Buh-Bowser, I...Fawful...he...kidnapped...'

'Just shut it!' Bowser snorted and crossed his arms.

'Buh...but...!'

'You have no idea what's going on, do you?' Mario observed.

'YOU!' Kamek jumped up and aimed his wand. When Bowser didn't react, he put it away. 'Oh _no_...not again.' He smacked his face with his hand. 'And I'd thought I'd seen the last of it after the Chaos Heart incident...'

'Funny you say that,' Mimi said. She pointed to the Void. 'We're in the middle of another one.'

Kamek groaned and muttered something about getting too old. 'Who're all of you?'

'Oh yeah, you haven't got a clue,' Bowser said. He went on to explain the current situation in as quickly as possible. He explained how when he kidnapped Peach Dimentio showed up and kidnapped him. After that, Mario took it from there, telling him the capture of Peach and Luigi, about how Fawful had been involved and how he had gone to Castle Bleck to save them. Then he explained how the Chaos Heart and Void had been created again and how now Dimentio was on his own and Fawful was with them.

'Okay...' Kamek said, scratching his head. 'I understand everything except for one thing...' He pointed a thumb at Fawful. 'Why did you bring him along?' Fawful glared at him.

'Because he's vulnerable,' Mario answered. 'Dimentio would probably want him out of the way before us even.'

'And why is that a problem?'

Fawful stomped his foot. 'Because Fawful is not wanting to end up dead again, that is being the problem!' he yelled.

'"Again?"'

'Never of the minding!'

'This is serious!' Mario exclaimed. 'We need all the help we can get. Dimentio's a powerful enemy, and who knows what kinds of tricks he has up his sleeves that we know nothing about? That's why we stopped here, to get help.' He stopped. 'Speaking of which, why didn't you find anyone Bowser?'

'Gwa ha ha!' Bowser laughed in response. 'I _did_.'

'Really?' Kamek said. 'Who was it? Kammy again?'

'Nope.' The Koopa King pointed a claw at Kamek. 'You're coming with me!'

Kamek's mouth dropped open. 'You aren't serious!' he exclaimed. 'Who'll watch the castle?'

'I'm sure Kammy will do a good job.'

Kamek scowled. '_Kammy..._' he spat. 'Er...your Ferociousness, I think I'm getting far too old, I think I should probably—'

'Aw, what is being the matter?' Fawful shot. 'Is the nanny too scared? Does he have more contentness to sit around and change the Koopas' smelly diapers?' He blew a raspberry.

'That's it!' He shot a blast at Fawful who flew through the air upon impact. Running over to him, he aimed his wand.

'KAMEK!' Bowser grabbed Kamek's arm (which Bowser's whole hand could hold) and lifted him into the air.

'WAH!' Kamek screamed.

'We NEED him you idiot!' Bowser roared. 'Didn't you hear Mario? We need all the help we can get! And that includes you!' He dropped him and the Magikoopa rubbed his arm. 'Now you'll join us or I'll feed you to the Chain Chomps!'

Kamek cringed before his king's might. Never before had he been before Bowser's true wrath...or, if he had, he had never _caused_ it. Fawful swore he could hear the old man's heart beating in his chest. A wide grin crossed his face. Kamek stood up. 'Okay...' he said, his voice no more than a hoarse whisper. 'I...I'll come. I'll come...'

Bowser patted his back. 'Bwa ha! I knew you'd see it my way!'

Fawful felt the overwhelming need to laugh out loud, but he held it in, moving up to the rest of the Heroes. As he passed Kamek, he giggled and make an exaggerated coughing noise, muttering "nanny." Kamek glared and Fawful's grin widened. 'I have chortles...' he whispered.

'If you want to say something, say it to my face,' Kamek growled.

'O of the kay.' Fawful turned around. 'HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!' he laughed, letting it all out of his chest. 'I, have, CHORTLES!'

Kamek buried his face in his hands. This was going to be a long journey for him, Fawful knew. Heck, he'd make it even longer for him.

Fawful actually collapsed on the ground and rolled. 'HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!'


	4. Chapter 4: Faux King

Chapter 4: Faux King

Dimentio

The newly built Castle Dimentio's throne room was a bustle with activity. Dimentio himself sat again in his throne, his masked face surveying the scene with a heightened pride. Everywhere he looked his creations moved about, testing out their new bodies. It had been a while since he had first created the one standing at his side, and he had experimented with things other than the typical humanoid creature. There were ones that flew, ones that burrowed, ones that had blades on their arms, ones that were faceless, ones that looked perfectly human (but most definitely weren't), and some that didn't have a definite shape, but were certain amounts of dark energy with physical mass in a gaseous form.

'Ah ha ha...' Dimentio chuckled. 'My creations, they are as grand as a musical in a renowned theatre!'

'There is a lot of...of...' His original creation was fumbling with a word he didn't know. 'How can I describe this?' he asked.

'Hm...variety, perhaps?'

The creation clapped it's hands together. 'That's it!'

The jester chuckled again. 'Building your vocabulary? That's a good sign.'

It turned back. 'Why did you bless only me with intelligence?'

Dimentio smiled and spread out his arms. 'Why would I want all of these badgering me with words and questions when I can have my right hand do it by himself?'

It gave a look of surprise. 'Thank you Master,' it said, the honour it felt apparent.

Dimentio rested his head and closed his eyes, the sounds of his creations slowly disappearing. After so long, he finally felt on top. Maybe not completely. He had only half of the Chaos Heart, after all, but at least he had an army of minions now. He had his own castle. He had a right-hand...thing. And the Heroes? Nothing. The Pure Hearts were gone with the Chaos Heart the first time. Now he had a new one. There was no way to stop him now, not without a new Purity Heart, and there was no way in the Underwhere they could get one.

A new Purity Heart...

Dimentio's head bolted up and his eyes snapped open. 'A new _Purity_ Heart?!'

His creation turned. 'Master? What is the matter?' Dimentio hadn't heard. Up until now he hadn't even considered it, but now that he thought of it, it was possible...

_A new Chaos Heart was created...couldn't a new Purity Heart be created as such?_

Thoughts were racing through his brain as he thought of all the possibilities. Merlon? Merlee? Descendants of the Tribe of Ancients still existed today throughout the dimensions. He wondered if the Mushroom Kingdom had prophets and sorcerers powerful enough to accomplish such a task. He wouldn't doubt it.

_If they create a Purity Heart...everything is ruined!_

'Master?!' His creation was growing worried. Dimentio still ignored him, almost falling out of his seat.

_Why did I not think of this before?!_ Dimentio gritted his teeth; his heart had sunk to his feet in sudden dread and he wondered why he had wasted his time sitting around.

'MASTER!'

His creature's loud bellow brought him back to reality. His head spun to face it with such a sudden, unexpected movement that it jumped back a bit. 'What?!' Dimentio snapped.

'Uh...' It was at a loss for words. 'What is the matter?'

'The matter...' Dimentio pounded his fists on the arms of his throne. 'My plan has a weak point, like a great, circular space station with an exhaust pipe only two meters across!'

'A...weak point?'

'Something that could spell our doom!' Dimentio was frantic, clutching the arms tightly. 'A new Purity Heart could be created to counteract the Chaos Heart...and if that happens...' Dimentio hung his head. 'We're finished.' The creature just stared.

'Master...I could stop them—'

'No.' Dimentio waved his hand, dismissing the idea. He sat, silent, for a few moments. He stared forward. 'Captain Valex,' Dimentio finally said.

It took the creature a moment to realize that his Master had just addressed him by a name. 'Yes?'

'You aren't strong enough, not by yourself. We need others. Others more skilled, smarter, deadlier than my creations. More importantly, those who know the weaknesses and strategies of the Heroes.'

'Who do you suggest?'

'I have no idea, but there are many villains in the Mushroom Kingdom.' He looked at Valex. 'Take a few of them and find villains. Tell them my plan. Make sure to try and persuade them. We need as much help as possible.'

It nodded. 'Yes Master. I will summon them as soon as they are able.' The two of them looked at the various creatures. 'I do not believe they can move well at the moment.'

'Nor do I,' Dimentio said. He got up. 'I will retire for now. Do not disturb me.' He floated off.

As Dimentio floated through the halls, the possibility of a weakness still assaulted him. How stupid had he been? He should have eliminated the Heroes as soon as he could, and he let them escape simply because he thought that they couldn't deal with him. The sounds of the bustle of the throne room slowly got quieter, until he could no longer hear them. Going down the hallways, he entered a door to a long room.

It was covered in tapestries, all depicting some form of Dimentio and his life. The same ones that were in his throne room were here as well, along with many others.

A great heart shining, one half black, one half white.

The classical theatre icon, featuring the masks of Comedy and Tragedy.

A strong, yet oddly unintelligent-looking military general.

A female vampire glaring, a serious expression on her face.

A dark prince with dark blue skin.

And...a gigantic spider with a human girl dangling from its head.

As Dimentio moved through the hallway at a slow walk, he took it all in. So many parts of him, to stay with him for eternity. His smile had disappeared; jokes and similes had no place here.

'A room of dreams and memories...' Dimentio muttered to himself. '_My_ dreams and memories.' He stopped and looked up at another tapestry.

An angel with pink eyes and hair in a flowing lavender dress, her white wings spread wide.

He stared at it. 'Rosabella...how are you enjoying the Overthere?' It wasn't longing, but a literal question. He knew she was there. How could she not be? 'Enjoy it while you can. It won't exist soon.' His hand went over his chest as his heart beat savagely in protest, the whines of the Chaos Heart echoing in his mind. 'Hurk...' He shook his head. 'After-effects of the energy...' He shook his head once more and continued on down the hall. The only sound he could hear was the muffled footsteps of his feet, covered by his soft jester shoes. He remembered a room in his old home, the castle in his home world, that this place reminded him of.

_Dimentio walked into the room, trailing behind his mother. He was very young, around five years of age. He looked up at his mother, his yellow and grey eyes sparkling with admiration. She had long black hair that flowed down to her hips. Her skin was a vibrant whitish colour, smooth and almost glowing in the light. Her beautiful green eyes scanned the room with a distant gaze, as if she were staring into a portal into the past._

_Dimentio's eyes drifted from her to the room. It was long and dark, with grey stones making up the room itself. Torches hung from the walls, casting an eerie glow across the hall and bathing both of them in a light that Dimentio wished were brighter. Tapestries hung from the walls everywhere he looked, showing pictures of powerful gods and beautiful goddesses, grisly wars and flowering towns. All recounting something involving the kingdom's history._

_Dimentio didn't like it._

_'Mommy...' He tugged on the woman's pant leg. 'I don't like this place. Why are we here...?'_

_His mother, Raphaella, turned to look down at her son, a soft smile on her face. Dimentio's fears subsided, just a little. 'Dimentio, try to think of the place as just a room. There are no ghosts out to get you.' She laughed; Dimentio didn't. She motioned around the room. 'This room is known as the Hall of Recollection. The tapestries hanging tell us stories. Battles. Deities. Treaties. Everything significant is here, in this room. You are looking into the past.'_

_Dimentio looked again. He stared at the tapestries and realized that he had heard stories about some of them. His mother often told him stories about gods and goddesses that triumphed over the demonic forces of the Underwhere in great battles. He saw familiar faces. 'You're right...' he whispered, suddenly feeling the need to be quieter. He did indeed feel like he was looking into the past._

_Raphaella smiled and picked up her son, putting him on her shoulders. She had had to be both a mother figure and a father figure to Dimentio, as his real father, Ganter, seemed to ignore him. The boy had never thought anything of it, but it broke the woman's heart to know that he would grow up without a real father in his life. 'See? There they all are, looking at you.' He was mesmerized, a broad smile growing across his face. 'Maybe someday you'll be up here.'_

_His eyes widened and he peered down at his mother. 'Really...?'_

_'Haha. You never know. You might grow up to be the world's greatest hero!' Instead of laughing too, Dimentio looked determined._

_'I'll do it mommy!' he proclaimed with the innocent confidence of youth. 'I'll be the best hero ever!'_

Dimentio focussed back on reality to realize that he had stopped walking. He stared hard at the floor, fists clenched at the memory.

_Ba-bump! Ba-bump!_ His heart beat painfully in his chest.

The jester grimaced and put his hand to his heart. He half expected sadness and longing to come forth, accompanying the deep, respectful love he felt for his mother, the only parental figure he had ever had.

Nothing.

No sadness. No longing.

And no love.

Nothing.

The Chaos Heart had erased all love from his being, and even if he wanted to feel it, he couldn't. His head sunk.

'Mother...' he whispered. 'Someday...I'll find you. Even if I don't love you...I promised you I would visit once a season. I intend to keep that promise.' It wasn't love that made him think of her, but respect and his own conscience. She hadn't been in the castle...she hadn't even been in the _kingdom_ when he had slaughtered everyone. She was alive, and he knew where. Things hadn't permitted him to visit for a while, however. He shook his head again for the umpteenth time and walked to the end of the hall, modelled after the one in his old home.

He reached the end and looked up. At the end of the hall, an enormous tapestry covered the entire wall, depicting the most blatant reference to him in the castle besides himself.

A man was sitting on an extravagant, dark throne. He had pale skin, his eyes were a bright yellow and a dull grey, and his hair was long, just above his shoulders, half black and half white. He wore what was essentially a purple, old-fashioned jacket, the sides hanging beyond his waist. The cuffs were buttoned on to the sleeves and were a pale yellow in colour. He wore darker purple pants and a regal-looking cape, purple on the outside and pale yellow on the inside. On his hands he wore dark yellow gloves. On his lap sat a black and white, Comedy-esque mask. He wore a smug, knowing smile on his face, like he knew information that could save your life or kill you. He looked so in control, so on top, so powerful. It was an evil, sadistic smile that Dimentio couldn't help but match at this moment.

'Another personification of me...' Dimentio thought it conveyed other aspects of his personality well, that were hidden beneath the layers of jokes and similes. 

The room was deathly silent and Dimentio felt a familiar chill travel up his spine. He had visited the room in the castle various times throughout his childhood, and he had always felt the same chill. This was no different, even if it wasn't really the same room. He almost wished someone were here with him, even if it was one of the Heroes. Silence could be deafening.

He turned and began to walk out the door. Passing by another hallway, he took a look at the spider tapestry. His heart gave another painful pound as he remembered Mimi, the love that he used to feel completely gone, replaced by only hate. 'I'll have your head in my hands soon enough Mimi...or I could keep you whole, and have your body as my ultimate trophy.' He couldn't hold it in. 'Ahahahahaha!' He laughed, not paying mind to the silence that he automatically kept, or the chills going up his own spine as it was disturbed, echoing off the walls and reverberating into his brain. Hearing it from another source, it almost scared _him._ Almost. 'AhahahaHA! Your death will be the savoury sweets on my gourmet dinner tray! AHAHAHAHAHA!' He hadn't laughed this hard in a while, and he very much enjoyed it.

He stopped and waited, giggling a bit before falling silent. He stared up once more, and the pain subsided. He smiled devilishly. 'Ah ha ha...just wait. Your misery isn't over quite yet.' He walked out of the room.

His bedroom door opened and he walked in and closed it tightly, the lock closing with a click. It was completely untouched from what it had been before, still modelled after Dimension D...his _second_ greatest accomplishment. He removed his hat, mask, poncho, shoes, gloves, and shirt and snapped his fingers, making them appear on his coat rack. He flopped onto the bed and closed his eyes, the day's exhausting trials of creating life finally catching up to him. Life was so difficult to create, and it required a incredible amount of mental and physical strength. While Dimentio had mental strength to spare, he wasn't exactly strong physically, which was why he was so tired. The Chaos Heart certainly helped...if he didn't have it in his possession, he probably would have killed himself trying. His thin, pale chest rose and fell in unison with his breaths, and he was grateful to have such a stronghold. A castle that reminded him of home...and a comfortable bed.

_..._

His eyes opened. What was that? Some sort of sound...?

_...monster..._

The jester sat up and looked around. 'Who are you? Show yourself!'

_...you're a...monster..._

Dimentio's head darted around frantically. He'd heard this voice before...but it was too faint to determine what it was. 'Show yourself!' His heart was being, and he could feel the Chaos Heart's rhythmic pulses inside of him.

_You don't...deserve...a perfect world..._

Amidst this voice, he could hear something else: a girl crying. 'Who...who are you?!' He was honestly frightened now, and had begun to sweat; never before had this happened to him.

_Go...away...you..._

A sharper beat made his hand twitch.

_Monster._

_SMASH!_

Dimentio's heart pounded against his chest with an intensity that he had never felt before, and a fiery pain exploded in it. His hand immediately went to clutch at his chest and the only sound in his mind was the shattering of glass...or, more specifically...of a Rubee. The Chaos Heart pulsed in his mind at the same time as his powerful heart beats. His vision blurred and he fell off the bed onto the floor in a heap.

'Ack...engh...GAH!' He felt like he was having a heart attack multiplied by 100. Tilting his head to look at his chest, he stared at the area over his heart, seeing that a black, glowing symbol was shown there: half of a symbolic, dark heart, pulsing and beating just as his own did. He felt like electric shocks were coursing through his veins and all of his limbs and body parts were in agony. His brain thudded under the stress and stars danced before his eyes. He moved his head to face up and saw his mirror. Without knowing why, he looked into it.

His eyes widened.

Staring back at him were eyes that were not his own.


	5. Chapter 5: Friendship

Chapter 5: Friendship

Fawful

Fawful gave an involuntary groan as the aching in his feet slowly grew to a painful throb. 'Fu...' he muttered irritably. 'I have fury...'

'Oh grow up...' Mimi spat as she bounced on one leg to tend to her own painful feet.

'You are not being the boss of Fawful!' the Bean snarled.

'Oh yeah? Says who?' Mimi shot back.

'Both of you please, SHUT UP!' Bowser roared from the front of the line.

The Heroes were trudging down a well worn down trail, the road under their feet dusty and dirty with the wear and tear of several years of travellers. The four Heroes of Prophecy, who were well used to roving in such a manner, weren't making complaints at all. The rest of them, however, were quite sore and not accustomed to such things, save Timpani, who was always energetic and moving about. Kamek used his broom to fly, so there was no problems for him.

'Fawful is still wondering why he cannot be using his Headgear!' Fawful shouted.

'Because it's _noisy,_' Kamek replied with a smirk. 'You'd think you could make it a little quieter.' He feigned a sigh. 'But, I guess you just aren't smart enough for that.'

Fawful was livid. 'Fuh...Fawful is possessing more intelligence than the entire Troop of Koopas combined!' he yelled.

'Hey!' Bowser grunted.

At the very front of the line, Mario sighed; this WAS going to be a long journey. 'Can we at least TRY to get along?' He had travelled with Bowser a lot, and he had been a handful, but Fawful was much worse, especially when you added Kamek to the mix.

'It is not being the fault of Fawful's!' the boy shouted. 'Kamek had the starting of it!'

'Oh yes, very mature,' Kamek snickered.

'Stupid old man!'

'Naive little kid!'

'FAWFUL IS NOT HAVING KIDNESS!'

'Just ignore him Fawful,' Mimi advised. 'He'll shut up.'

Fawful was much more than miffed at this point. 'Fawful is thinking that did not have the applying when _Dimentio_ was bugging you!'

Mimi stopped. Fawful walked a few steps and realized that she wasn't there. He turned back to see her staring at him, her face slowly giving way to anger. 'You...you...' she sputtered, enraged.

Fawful's heart sank and he started sweating nervously. 'Um...Fawful is having the apologizes...' he managed to say.

Mimi marched right up to him and stared him in the eyes. 'You...you insensitive...' Without so much as a moment's hesitation, she brought her hand around and slapped him in the face. Fawful's head was jerked to the side sharply, and he slowly brought it around to face her again. Shock and bewilderment was on his face, along with a slowly growing, red mark where her palm had met it's mark. 'MEANY!' she finished furiously, and ran off to rejoin the group. After standing for a moment longer, Fawful followed suit.

Time passed as they walked, most of them talking pleasantly despite the extremely large responsibility that each and every one of them carried on their shoulders. Mimi was in a very distant mood, and returned Fawful's apologies with a glare that, if looks could kill, would have killed Fawful several times over. The Beanish boy's heart sank a little more every time this occurred, and he was gloomy to the point where he was quite quiet. Quite a feat.

'My my, aren't you quiet?' Kamek goaded. 'Are you sure you don't have anything to yell out? No fury or rage?'

'Make with the immediate up shut Kamek,' Fawful spat. 'Fawful wishes to be left alone.' Trees' leaves swayed in the wind overhead, providing the occasional moment of shade under the sunlight.

'But this is just so much _fun!_' the Magikoopa said. 'I mean, you can't blast my head off, or "have the destroying of me," or whatever you say. After all, we're on the same team and all. So I think I can have all the fun I want right now, especially after all you've done to me.'

'Fawful has had the things of badness happen to him because of the Koopa who is you!'

Kamek stretched. 'Ah, true, but you deserved it.'

'FAWFUL deserved it?' the boy screeched. 'YOU are the one who had the betraying of me! YOU are the one who denied Fawful's brilliance to the Troop of Koopas, YOU are the one who—!'

'Whoa whoa whoa there Shorty,' Kamek chuckled. 'I never denied my wrongdoings to you. I'm just evil.' He winked. Fawful grimaced. Stupid turtle...

'Why can you not be leaving Fawful alone?' the Bean huffed. 'We are being on the side that is the same.' Kamek just laughed. Fawful sighed. Kamek wasn't going to make the trip any easier either.

The group sat down on the grass for a break in the walking. Fawful flopped down on his back and fought to get rid of the cramps that were racking his stomach. 'Oough...' he groaned. 'I have pain...' He wasn't used to so much walking...

He brushed off his cloak and polished his swirled glasses. The world was a blur for a moment until he put them back on his face. Looking around, a few people were talking to other people. Peach and Timpani were immersed in conversation, as well as Blumiere and Nastasia. The others took time to relax. However...

Mimi caught his attention. She was sitting alone under a tree, quite still. She had her head rested back on the trunk, her hair falling over her face. Fawful gulped; he hated having her angry at him. The only other time he remembered that happening was...

_'Fawful is a villain of excellence. Fawful cannot waste time on a little girl like the one which is you.'_

The boy pounded his little fists on his legs in frustration. What the heck was he doing? He should be destroying all of them, not _helping_ them, and wasting time worrying about some _girl!_

...but it was so hard not to worry.

He sighed in defeat. There was no way not to worry, and even if Mimi didn't want to, he was going to apologize successfully. He got up and walked to the tree.

'Mimi,' he said quietly.

She shifted. 'Go away,' she ordered, a hint of controlled hurt in her voice.

'No,' Fawful answered simply.

'Go AWAY,' she spat.

'No.'

There was silence between the two for a few moments. 'What do you want Fawful?'

'Fawful is wanting to give the one who is you the apologies. Fawful did not mean to have the hurting of you, and he is hoping you are not hating Fawful's innards.'

'Your...innards?'

'Is that not what people are saying when meaning the things on the inside of you that you are supposed to be hating?'

'Um...' Mimi was confused. 'Oh!' She remembered. 'You mean guts. Not innards.'

'Oh. Well, in the case of any, I have apologies. So many of the apologies...'

'It's okay.'

Fawful couldn't believe his ears. 'Whating? But I thought you were hating Fawful's inna...his guts!'

She shook her head. 'Nah, that was me being...stupid. You didn't know it'd make me upset.' She stood up. 'Still friends?'

Fawful stared for a moment in disbelief and then shook her hand. 'Yesing, of course!' He still couldn't believe it.

_Ba-bump._

An electric shock travelled through Fawful's hand and spread to the rest of his body. He and Mimi jumped and took their hands away hastily. Tendrils of darkness waved from both of their hands before fading away. 'What was that?' Mimi exclaimed.

Fawful didn't know, but he figured it had something to do with him.

_Ba-bump._

The Chaos Heart beat in time with his own heart. He shook his head, making his Headgear look at him curiously. 'Mimi,' Fawful said. She looked at him. 'What are you?'

The seriousness of Fawful's question caught her off guard. 'What do you mean?'

'You are being a shifter of shapes,' Fawful explained. 'How is Fawful to know that this form isn't your form of originality?'

'Well...it's not,' she answered wearily.

'It's...not?'

'No. Remember True Mimi?'

Fawful remembered with a stifled gasp what the green girl was referring to. The giant, eight-legged monstrosity that Mimi had become during the battle with Dimentio. That had scared him beyond anything that he had witnessed before. 'THAT is your form of originality?' he exclaimed.

Mimi nodded. 'Yep.' She looked down at herself. 'I'm not the vulnerable little girl you think I am.'

A chill passed through Fawful's body, and then...utter, scientific curiosity. 'But...then what are you?'

Mimi tensed. 'Huh?'

Fawful's eyes narrowed behind his glasses. There was no way she didn't hear that. 'What are you?' he repeated.

'Um...I'd rather not discuss that...' She was becoming nervous.

'What, you are not trusting Fawful? Your friend?'

'No, it's not that, it's just...' She shook her head. 'I just don't want to talk about it.'

Fawful decided to try something different. 'May Fawful see your form again then?' he asked her.

Mimi glared at him. 'You're just being annoying now. Why do you want to see?'

'Fawful just has curiousness,' he answered truthfully.

He watched as Mimi weighed her options. Finally, she crossed her arms. 'Fine.' She turned and walked away. When she walked far enough away, Fawful took that as an invitation to follow her.

The sun was setting, and they had walked a lot. Fawful thought that their break was going to end up being their resting place for the night. The grass waved in the wind and a beautiful lake reflected the orange light of the sun. The body of water glittered like diamonds, and Fawful, despite never really bothering to care about such spectacles, found it breathtaking. The only thing ruining it was the small, swirling shape of the Void in the sky.

Mimi stopped to look at it too. Her eyes were alive as she looked at the wonderful sight. She sat down and took a deep breath. Fawful sat down beside her. Both were silent for a while. Mimi broke it.

'You know Fawful...' she said, without a hint of stress in her voice. 'It's been a long time...well, I don't know if I remember a time, when I've seen something so beautiful...'

Fawful looked at her curiously. 'Why are you saying such things? There are probably many things of beauty in the universe.'

Mimi shook her head. 'I know, but...' She sighed sadly. 'I've never had time to enjoy them. I spent so much of my life scared and alone, and even when I was with Count Bleck, I never had a break. Nothing seemed right. Castle Bleck was a home, a refuge, and his promises for a perfect world were just great...but I never realized until everything went wrong that the world has a lot of things in it that are perfect.' A look of surprise passed her face. 'Golly!' she said with a grin. 'The Count would sure say I've changed.'

'Sometimes the things that have tragedy can have the changing of people,' Fawful admitted.

'Has that ever happened to you Fawful?'

The Bean boy thought hard. Really, he hadn't changed at all. He was still the same wicked toady he had been before.

And yet...

_But I am Lord Fawful! I am ruling the world!_

Fawful smiled in his wide, toothy way as he realized that it was not so. Years ago under Cackletta's teachings he would have never thought he would become as he was. He had made his own plans over the years, the Blorb Epidemic being the greatest of them. Cackletta would be proud...

Mimi jumped as Fawful let loose an uncontrollable laugh. 'I have pride!' he shouted. His own eyes sparkled and his glasses reflected the light of the water as he took in the setting sun. 'Such greatness have I...'

'Well, don't you have a huge ego,' Mimi joked with a laugh. She punched him lightly in the shoulder.

'People of evil are often having an ego of largeness,' Fawful answered with his own laugh.

'Hey, that reminds me...why are you evil?'

Fawful was taken aback by the question. 'Well...um...' He couldn't believe it. 'Fawful has no idea.'

'Huh.' Mimi laughed. 'I guess when you're raised as an evil person, you aren't evil. It's just who you are.'

A gust of wind blew as a chubby raven flew overhead; Fawful suddenly found himself thinking of the Yoshies. 'And why are you on the side that is being evil, Mimi?'

Mimi looked at him, miffed. 'Well ex_cuse_ me!' she huffed.

Fawful jumped, embarrassed. 'Erm...Fawful means, why _were_ you on the side of evil?' Fawful certainly hoped that he was right and she used to be evil; how else would she know Dimentio?

'That's better,' she said with a smirk. 'Well...' Her smirk disappeared and she looked out at the lake. 'I...don't know why I was evil. I guess I thought I was doing good, really, trying to help the Count make a perfect world. I guess we were all wrong.' Lightning flashed from the Void and Fawful and Mimi both shuddered as the feeling of doom passed through them. 'I've never been on this side of the Void before...' Mimi breathed. 'I've always been behind the one in control...I've never had to wait, wondering how much time I have left...' She gulped. 'Fawful...what if we don't make it?' Panic and fear crept into her voice. 'What if creating a Purity Heart is impossible? Then what? Do we just wait to die?'

'Fawful doesn't know...' he admitted. His heart sank as he realized what Mimi was talking about: there was a chance that what they had to do what completely impossible. If that was the case...

'There are so many things in life I want to do Fawful, so many things I haven't experienced!' She was on the verge of tears, and Fawful thought that she had put words right into his mouth.

Fawful curled his fingers into fists and gritted his teeth; this was all Dimentio's fault. All of it. 'Mimi,' he said, and she looked at him.

She wiped tears from her eyes and sniffed. 'What?' she asked weakly.

'If it is impossible to have the creation of the Purity Heart...Fawful will do what he can to stop it himself.'

'But...that's impossible without the Pure Hearts!' Mimi exclaimed.

'Fawful is not caring.' He smiled. 'Fawful will win. For you.'

A look passed Mimi's face that Fawful had never seen before. Her eyes widened and her muscles tightened slightly. She swallowed and blinked, just staring at him. This happened in the space of five seconds. Then she relaxed. 'Um...' She was unsure of how to respond, and Fawful feared that he had scared her. 'Th...thank you, Fawful...I'll...remember that.' She gave a smile. 'Um...wasn't there something I was supposed to be showing you?'

Fawful had completely forgotten. 'I have forgetfulness!' he exclaimed. 'Though...' He looked out at the setting sun on the lake, and at Mimi. 'Fawful is thinking that he is enjoying this much better.

Mimi's smile wasn't forced this time. 'Yeah...me too.'

_Ba-bump._

Fawful went alert. 'What was that?' he asked.

'What was what?'

'That sound! That sound of...a beat of a heart!' Fawful exclaimed.

'I never heard anything...'

_Ba-bump._

'Again! The sound!' Fawful shouted in a panic.

'Calm down Fawful!' Mimi stressed. 'It's just in your head I'll bet.'

_Ba-bump!_

'Urk!' Fawful's heart gave a great beat. He put his hand to his chest and stood up, looking around.

'What is it?' Mimi stood up too. 'What's going on?'

Fawful wasn't listening. Her voice was drowned out by the rhythmic beats of the two hearts: his own, and...

_The Chaos Heart..._

Fawful's vision doubled and he felt like a spike was driven through his heart. He screamed and tears streaked down his face. He fell over on his stomach and clutched his chest. Mimi screamed too, and went to his side. 'Fawful!' she cried. 'Fawful!' He couldn't hear. He could only hear one voice:

_Love is useless, my Beanish friend! Why bother? It'll only cause you _pain_!_ Fawful inched forward uncontrollably towards the lake. His heart throbbed, and he tore open his shirt to see a sight that horrified him like no other: half a black, pulsing heart, beating in time with his own, real one. It felt like glass flowed through his veins, and he suddenly felt that he'd prefer to face death again then this. _Ahahahaha! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!_

He peered over the lake and caught his reflection. His heart skipped a beat and his eyes went as wide as saucers as he saw not his face reflected in the water, but someone else's.

_Dimentio's._


	6. Chapter 6: Minions

Chapter 6: Minions

Dimentio

Sweat dripped down Dimentio's face. His eyes were wide, his breath was sucked clean out of his lungs. Staring back at him from his mirror wasn't a reflection of him...it was someone else.

_Fawful._

The eerily large, toothy grin of the Beanish scientist sparkled in light that it shouldn't have, the swirly glasses creating a veil of reflected light over his eyes. His red and yellow cloak was draped over his body, though Dimentio could see the other half of the black heart pumping on his green skin, his shirt opened revealing his chest.

Dimentio was silent for a long while, his eyes fixated on the "reflection." After his momentary shock, he stirred. Standing upright, he brushed his hands on his black, jester-esque pants and snapped his fingers. He was purged of all uncleanliness.

He took a deep breath. Fawful's appearance in the mirror had shocked him; nothing like that had ever happened to him before. It was always him. 'Shocking,' he muttered to himself, 'like the appearance of a foe long since defeated.' He rubbed his eyes and looked back into the mirror: Fawful was still there. Dimentio's mouth curled into an annoyed smile. 'Begone!' he commanded, and snapped his fingers.

Nothing.

Perplexed, he tried again. Still nothing. Fawful still haunted his reflection. Dimentio crossed his arms and laughed. 'The dear Count never had any such trouble when _he_ used the Chaos—'

It hit him.

_One half of the Chaos Heart, embedding itself in the jester's body. The other half, merging with the boy..._

'So,' Dimentio concluded aloud. 'That's the problem.'

_Ba-bump._

'Even now, I can't shake that boy...'

_Ba-bump._

'With the two of us sharing the Chaos Heart...

_Ba-bump._

Dimentio paused.

_Ba-bump..._

'This is unfortunate.' He sighed and sat back down on his bed. Those days back when he worked under Count Bleck were so easy. There was nothing to what he was doing. Now, however, it seemed that there was setback after setback for him, and this one was probably the worst. With Fawful sharing the Chaos Heart with Dimentio, they were bonded...and that meant trouble for Dimentio. If Fawful could somehow learn to control the dark power that lay dormant inside of him, Dimentio could be beaten even before they created a Purity Heart. 'Very unfortunate indeed...'

Dimentio laid down on his bed. Sleep overcame him almost instantly.

His eyes blurred as consciousness brought him back to the waking world. He stretched and got up, dressed in his jester attire, and floated out of the room. As he left the bedroom hall, he was greeted by a black and white creature floating past his face.

Dimentio grinned; his creations were mobile.

He entered the meeting chamber he was so used to seeing from his meetings with Count Bleck and co. Black, checkered columns rose into the air, dominating the otherwise empty room. He teleported to the top of his column. After a moment, he realized that there was no one else to occupy the other columns. As he fought back a small twinge in his chest, he warped onto the column that Count Bleck had once occupied. The high view from the tallest column brought a smile to his face; he was no longer someone's bootlicker. Now, down to business.

'Valex!' he shouted.

Silence. No captain.

'Valex!' he repeated.

Silence.

Dimentio grinned irritably and snapped his fingers. 'VALEX!' he roared, his voice magnified.

The black and white humanoid entered the chamber immediately. He bowed. 'Master.' His monochrome voice echoed throughout the room.

'How goes the search?' the jester asked eagerly.

Valex stood up and stared at him, his mouth curved into a slight smile. 'We found some.'

'Oh?' Dimentio grinned. 'Do tell. How many?'

'Two.'

Dimentio's heart sank below his knees from disappointment. 'Two? _Two?_'

'Yes. Two.'

'How could you only find TWO? There are probably hundreds of villains in the Mushroom Kingdom!'

'Yes Master, but many refused. Many more aren't able to answer, as they are dead.'

'Only two people sided with you?' Dimentio asked again.

'Yes Master. Just two.'

Dimentio sighed. 'That was far less than I was hoping for.' Then again, Count Bleck only had four. Three really; Nastasia never really did anything. And Dimentio already had Valex. 'Two villains it is then,' Dimentio said. 'Where are they?'

'In the castle dungeons.'

Dimentio smirked. 'Why there?'

'I would not have them free in this place without your consent.'

'Ha!' Dimentio laughed. 'Good answer. Bring them in.'

Valex nodded and snapped his fingers. A few moments later, two individuals were carried in by two flying creatures and dumped unceremoniously on the floor. The creatures left.

'Hot diggity _dang!_' one of the two exclaimed. 'If that ain't the roughest usherin' into a room I ever had!'

Dimentio's grin faltered for a moment, then just twitched in bewildered irritation. 'Captain...what in the dimensions have you brought me?'

The jester had a good reason to wonder. They were two residents of the Mushroom Kingdom. The first was what was called a "Clubba." This one in particular had blue skin and great big, orange lips. Small, pudgy arms extended out of the sleeves of his black vest worn over a smart green dress shirt. A big red bowtie was tied on his neck, making him look like a bizarre businessman. A black, double-tipped hat with a white stripe around the rim shaded his face from the torchlight in the room. His circular sunglasses and smooth, purple shell glinted in the black room, which had been completely untouched by Dimentio's renovations; it was exactly as it was during his time with the Count and crew. A very Bowser-esque, orange mane of hair flared messily out from the back of his head.

The Clubba looked up at him. 'Well howdy there pardner!' he said. 'You the leader o' this here...' He searched for a suitable word for Castle Dimentio. 'Place?' he decided.

'That I am,' Dimentio answered. 'Castle Dimentio, the newly improved and refurbished Castle Bleck, home to the mastermind behind the Void, and the future God of a perfect new world.' He warped down to the floor. 'Me.' He grinned evilly, and the Clubba shifted nervously.

The Clubba shook his head and extended his hand. 'Name's Grubba, ex-evildoer and former manager of the Glitz Pit. Nice to meet yer acquaintance feller.'

Dimentio stared him down, and he could tell Grubba had just made a mental note to no longer use the word "feller." He extended his own hand. 'I am Dimentio.' He shook it.

A jolt of power passed through Dimentio, sending a pinprick of pain through his finger and up his arm to his brain. He lost sight momentarily and his mind gave him visions of a gigantic, orange Grubba with spiked, lighter orange hair and a yellow-spiked shell, a huge machine and a golden, multifaceted star...

He blinked and it was over. Grubba reeled and collapsed on the floor, clutching his head. 'Owowow...' he groaned. 'What a trip...'

'Ha!' the second one laughed. 'Pretty smooth first impression, slick! Can't even shake the guy's hand without suffering a migraine! You geezer.'

When Dimentio looked at the second being, all he saw at first was a stark-white bed sheet. It seemed to shine in the ghastly light of the hall, the contrast between black and white unbelievable. Two big eyeholes were seemingly cut into the sheet, a red dot staring ominously out of each. A jack-o'-lantern-style mouth hole breathed in air, moving with the force of the deceased. Two red shoes could be seen under the bottom of the sheet, and a light blue bowtie, though not as well done as Grubba's, was tied onto where his neck would be. A blue party hat adorned with red stars rested on his head, black party string affixed onto the top of it.

Dimentio smiled and warped in front of him. 'And what do we have here?' he said. 'A coward in a bed sheet, perhaps?'

'Hey!' The covered creature, called a "Duplighost," snarled at him. 'You remove this sheet and you're dead meat!'

Dimentio ignored the comment and cut to the chase. 'Who are you?'

'None of your business!' he snapped. Dimentio heard a knuckle crack, and the Duplighost gulped, glancing at Valex. 'I mean...I'm Doopliss.' He didn't extend his hand.

Dimentio nodded, then warped back onto his pillar. 'You two are here for a reason!' he exclaimed, his voice echoing off the walls. 'To bear witness to the creation of the perfect world. I, the Master of Dimensions, the Pleaser of Crowds...am your master!'

'Master?' Doopliss scoffed. 'Not likely!'

Dimentio smiled at the poor creature's ignorant statement. 'And why do you say that?'

'Because I don't take orders from anyone!' he spat angrily.

'Well then...' Dimentio warped onto another platform. 'Perhaps I could change your mind.'

'Hah!' Doopliss' sheet billowed ominously. 'Bring it on, clown!'

Doopliss rose into the air, his sheet flowing on top of him. His red eyes glowed with a mischievous glint. 'You don't know who you're up against, slick,' he gloated.

'Ah ah ah!' Dimentio wagged a finger. 'Mind your superiors.' He floated up as well.

Doopliss laughed and shot off towards Dimentio, who warped out of the way easily. Doopliss changed course and the jester dodged and ducked, laughing. 'Stop moving!' he snarled.

'Ah ha ha! Pick up the pace, you'll lose me!' Despite the ease of the fight, Dimentio felt a giddiness rise up from his stomach as adrenaline began to pump. Nothing beat the thrill of a good fight. He dodged another attempt at a head butt from the ghost and bounced off a pillar using his legs.

Doopliss touched ground and scowled. 'Dang, you're quick, slick! I'll give ya that much.'

Dimentio grinned. 'Many thanks!'

Doopliss' scowl deepened. 'Yeah, well I can do a lot more than just fly around, you know.'

The jester touched ground too and regarded Doopliss. 'Let's see then...what power do you possess?' He was beginning to doubt that the Duplighost would be any good to him.

Doopliss' mouth went into a grin of his own. He opened his mouth and his eyes widened, a juvenile cackle escaping his lips. His eye glowed brightly and he disappeared in a poof of purple, Mimi-esque smoke. Dimentio raised his eyes to look up and saw a bright green light scan him from top to bottom. It disappeared and Doopliss rose from the ground.

'Ha! Look at this! You're...' He looked down at himself, and was astonished at what he saw.

He looked exactly the same.

'WHAT?' he gasped. 'How...how...HOW...?'

Dimentio chuckled. 'Such an attack! I'm wowed into immovability!' The Chaos Heart was probably warding off his attack.

Doopliss was shocked. 'This wasn't supposed to happen!' he shouted. He closed his eyes and pressed against his forehead irritably. 'Ah forget it.' He disappeared into a poof of smoke again and scanned Dimentio again, this time appearing out of the ground as an exact copy of Dimentio.

The jester's raised his eyebrows in surprise. 'Ah, so _that's_ it!'

'Not what I wanted, but it'll have to do.' He raised his hand. 'So now I'll start out with a bang!' Dimentio warped away just in time as the Duplighost snapped his fingers and an explosion rocked the room. 'Hyuk hyuk hyuk!' he laughed. 'Now THIS is more like it!' The two jesters flew into the air and assaulted each other with a barrage of dimensional energy blocks. Dimentio was impressed; Doopliss had had his body for all of a few moments and he could use his magic perfectly. He seemed to sense Dimentio's surprise. 'Like it? All the knowledge of your attacks come gift wrapped to me right away!' He teleported behind Dimentio and shot him in the back. The jester crashed to the ground and rolled, hopping back up.

'Quite the show you can put on,' Dimentio complimented. 'Never before have I had to do battle with myself!'

Doopliss laughed again. 'Yeah, I'm pretty awesome. Better than YOU even!'

'Ahahahaha!' Dimentio laughed. 'Don't be so sure. You don't have an inkling of a clue who you're fighting.'

'I'd say I do...' Doopliss said. He flew directly at Dimentio. 'And I'd also say you're done for, slick!'

The magician gave no reply. He just raised his hand and brought forth some energy from the Chaos Heart. Then, huge tendrils of energy shot out from his palm, snaking through the air, wrapping around the Dimentio-clone. He then brought him close and stared his mirror image in the eyes. 'Think before you speak.' He thrust out his hand and Doopliss was thrown into the wall, the tendrils crashing on top of him.

The tendrils disappeared and Doopliss crawled out, poofing back to his original form. 'Uuuuugh...' he moaned, and felt into a heap, sheet tangled. 'Alright, you win!'

Dimentio found himself laughing again. 'And that's where you stand.' He looked around the room and saw Grubba edge himself nervously out from behind a pillar.

'Sheesh, what a whuppin'!' he exclaimed. 'Betcha not even the Great Gonzales could stand up to that!' Dimentio decided he didn't care who this "Gonzales" was.

'Now that that's done,' the magician said. 'It's time for you to make a choice.' He eyed them both. 'Will you stand by me? Or will I have to throw you out into the world as it counts down the last of its life? The choice is yours.'

After the display, Grubba had his answer in two seconds. 'Former manager Grubba at your humble service!' He hurried over and kneeled.

Dimentio regarded Doopliss. 'And you?'

Doopliss got up and dusted himself off, muttering a profanity under his breath. 'Yeah...' He coughed. 'Yeah, I'll stay. I'll help you.'

Dimentio beamed and warped onto his pillar. 'Good, good!' He clasped his hands together and rocked on the edge of the pillar. 'Together, the Heroes will be helpless against us!' Sparks danced from his hands. 'No more waiting,' he breathed to himself. 'Now...now they'll see what they're _really_ up against.'


	7. Chapter 7: Boarish

Chapter 7: Boarish

Fawful

Fawful stared, paralyzed with fear. Reflected back at him from the clear surface of the lake was the masked face of Dimentio, the same sadistic smile spread across his face that he so often wore. His poncho and shirt were gone, his half of the Chaos Heart so dark it was clearly visible against his dark blue skin. Beads of sweat trickled down Fawful's face as both halves of the Chaos Heart beat at the same time.

_Forever connected, Fawful..._

Fawful tried to shut out the jester's voice, but it was as clear as if he were speaking to him right next to him.

_Shared hearts..._

He shook his head furiously.

_Shared minds..._

'Shut...up...' Fawful managed to breathe.

_How does it feel...to have the ultimate darkness inside of you?_

'Have...the shutting...up...' Fawful had no breath, he was completely winded.

_It feeds off you...destroying who you are..._

Fawful's teeth were grit with an intense pain and fury.

_Soon...you will be..._

He closed his fingers around a large rock.

_No more._

'QUIEEEET!' Fawful screamed, and hurled the rock at the reflection. The rippling water snapped him out of his stupor and he yanked his head away from the lake, rolling and landing in a heap on the wet grass. Tears streaked down his face. He cried into his cloak, trying to muffle the sounds and not to look weak in front of Mimi. The helplessness of the situation had completely overwhelmed him, and with this new trauma added on, he broke down. He bit hard into his cloak, hearing a tear as he yanked it apart.

'Fawful!' The cry of alarm came from Mimi. She knelt down and grabbed his shoulder, shaking him. 'Fawful! Are you okay?'

'I...' Fawful breathed. 'I...I...'

'What?' Mimi was terrified.

'I HAVE _FURYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!_' The proclamation echoed off of the lake and trees. The Beanish boy's Headgear sprang to instant life, the mouth glowing dangerously. Mimi ran behind cover as Fawful began blasting everything in sight. 'I HAVE FURY!' he screamed. 'I HAVE FURY! FURYFURYFURYFURYYYYYY!' Tears rolled down his cheeks, displaying his anguish for all who would want to see. 'FURY! FURY! FURYYY!' Balls of energy splashed into the crystalline lake, the water hissing loudly as they hit, evaporating the splashing liquid. Trees had holes burned through them, the charred insides bubbling from the raw power. Grass was disintegrated, the dirt and earth torn up and thrown through the air. Throughout this destruction, Fawful was completely deaf; he heard nothing except the merciless beating of that accursed Chaos Heart, the thumps filling his ears like enormous gongs.

_BA-BUMP! BA-BUMP! BA-BUMP!_

Fawful clawed at his head, beating against it and screaming as his brain thudded in his head. If there was such a thing as Hell on Earth, this was it. He'd rather take death itself over this madness. He could only assume that this was what Dimentio felt on that fateful day, thousands of years ago. A blast hit a tree and Fawful faintly heard Mimi scream, but it didn't register enough for him to care. His heart was in a painful state, his chest exploding with pain as if it was being burned and squeezed. In the midst of this insanity, sheer darkness dominated his mind. He wanted nothing more than to destroy everything, erase all of his pain. His fists clenched.

'I HAVE DAAAAAARK—!'

_THUD!_

His vision blurred and all the dark thoughts and feelings immediately retreated as he felt the sharp impact of Mario's Ultra Hammer crash into his head. His knees went weak and he fell face first into the dirt he had blown up. His sight went black for a moment and one thought went through his head.

_Fawful..._

He could only choke on his own words as he struggled against his numbs body. 'Urrngh...Cack...letta...'

_Don't let the darkness...consume you..._

In an instant, everything became clear and he was aware of the immense pain that was taking place at the back of his skull. The world was a blur and he realized his glasses had fallen off. He shut his eyes and moaned in agony. 'Ungh...I have pain...' He clutched his injured head.

'F...Fawful...?' Mimi crept up beside Mario, who held his Hammer in front of him wearily.

'Muh...Mimi...' He got up to his feet and then collapsed again. He groaned.

Mimi walked in front of him. 'Are you okay...?' Fear laced her voice and Fawful felt his heart break; she was scared of him.

'I...' He groaned. 'I have confusion...and...pain...' He squinted his eyes shut and more tears were shed. He pushed himself up with his arms and they collapsed under him. Mimi hooked her arms under his shoulders and helped him to his feet. He staggered but she held him firmly on the sides.

'Fawful. Are you okay?' Her fear was receding, giving way to concern.

'I...' The short amount of distance between them allowed him to see her more clearly. He stared into her eyes, and she stared back for a moment. A look of surprise passed through her face; she gasped. 'What?' Fawful asked. 'What is the matter being?'

Mimi shook her head. 'Nothing Fawful.' She swallowed. 'What happened back there?'

_Ba-bump._

Fawful winced. 'Fawful is having no idea. Fawful just...'

'Lost it?' Mimi finished for him.

The Bean nodded. 'Yes. Fawful had the losing of his head.'

There was utter silence. Everyone seemed to be holding their breath, from Luigi to Bowser to Blumiere to Kamek. No one spoke. No one moved. The Magikoopa stared curiously, wondering what could have caused the boy to lose his mind like he did. Not one time before had he resorted to senseless violence; his violence always had a reason.

It was Luigi who broke the silence. 'Mamma-mia...what happened?'

Fawful could tell that everyone wanted to know. Unfortunately...

'Fawful has no answer for you,' he said. 'Fawful does not know himself. All Fawful can say is...Fawful had the losing of his mind. It won't be occurring again.'

It took a few moments for the group to process Fawful's words. They shook their heads tiredly. 'Well...' Mario muttered. 'Well then, uh...' He looked up at the sky; the sun was disappearing below the horizon. 'Let's go back then. We'll rest here for the night.' After another moment of silence, the group walked off. The only ones left were Fawful and Mimi.

Fawful looked at the green blur he knew to be Mimi. He wearily did his shirt back up, hiding the Chaos Heart on his chest from view. 'Fawful will find his way back.' Mimi nodded and left, stealing a glance behind her shoulder before leaving for good.

Fawful staggered around until he found his glasses. He picked them up and put them on. As he did, he saw that the irises of his eyes were glowing with a slowly fading redness. Stealing another glance into the lake he saw that Dimentio was still looking back up at him. He shivered; the Chaos Heart was doing so much to him...

Dreading what he was going to see, he stole a glance down at himself. There were bruises all over his arms and his cloak was torn and wet with tears and saliva. Blood leaked from the self-inflicted wounds on his arms and head and some of his hair had been pulled out, though not much. His Headgear had powered down, thankfully.

Taking one last moment of peace for himself, the Beanish boy stared out at the lake again, which had grown serene and peaceful after what had transpired. He sighed. 'I have confusion...' As he turned around and walked back to the camp, he swore he heard Cackletta's voice whisper in the wind.

Night had fallen. Dozens of sparkling white stars shone overhead. A glowing yellow half moon floated in space. The slowly rotating, orbiting rock stuck in a path by the planet's gravity captivated Fawful, not because of its scientific mysteries, but simply because of its look. People often said that the moon was a metaphor for good and evil: the bright side, reflecting light from the sun, and the dark side, shunned from the sun's light. No matter how much was bright and how much wasn't, good and evil were still present; it just took time for them to achieve a balance.

Unfortunately for Fawful, he wasn't quite certain which side he belonged to.

On one hand, he had been born and raised as a villain, hatched numerous schemes, and now had half of the artefact of ultimate destruction inside of him. One the other hand, he was now travelling with a group of heroes to stop an evil prophecy that foretold the destruction of the universe and against the evil madman at the centre of it all. He threw his hands in the air as if to say "I surrender!"

'Fawful?'

The whisper caused the Bean to bolt upright in alarm.

'SHH!' A hand was clamped over his mouth before he could yell. 'It's Mimi!'

Fawful relaxed and moved her hand. 'What are you doing?' he hissed. 'Trying to give Fawful's heart a stopping?'

'Sorry,' she apologized. 'I just...couldn't sleep.'

'Fawful cannot have the sleeping either.' He yawned; even though he couldn't nod off, he was exhausted. 'What is the problem that you must be talking to Fawful at this hour that is very very early?'

'Well...I just wanted to ask you a question.' The green girl sounded very nervous.

'Yes?'

'What exactly happened back there?'

Fawful paused and stared her down. 'What if Fawful's business is not your business to be asking about?'

'Well, considering I almost died back there I think I deserve to know!' she hissed.

Fawful couldn't argue with that logic. 'Fawful will ask you something then: did you see the reflection of Fawful?'

'Huh?'

'In the lake, Fawful's reflection?'

'Um...yeah, I did. It was normal. You were staring at it like you'd seen a ghost.'

'Fawful is not thinking that it was normal.'

Mimi frowned in the darkness. 'Well then what did you see?'

'...Dimentio.'

The pause that followed was excruciating.

'You're...you're joking, right?'

'Fawful wishes he was joking, but this has much seriousness. Do you remember, back in the castle that is belonging to Dimentio—'

'The Count sliced the Chaos Heart in half—'

'One half had the joining with Dimentio, and the other with...'

'You...'

Fawful nodded. 'Have the watching.' Fawful took off his cloak and rested it on the ground, then started to undo his shirt.

'What are you doing?' Mimi hissed. 'Now's not the time to try to act manly!'

'Make with the quiet and watch!' Fawful spat. He undid the rest of his shirt and opened it. Even in the blackness of night, the Chaos Heart imbedded on Fawful's chest could be clearly seen.

Mimi gasped. 'What the—'

'SHH!' Fawful shhed.

'What the heck is that?' Mimi demanded quietly.

'Chaos Heart,' Fawful answered.

'What do you mean that's the Chaos Heart? That never happened to the Count!'

'Fawful's situation is having much difference than his.' Mimi eyed the beating half-heart with a fear that displayed itself openly. She reached her hand out. 'No touching!' Fawful barked, and she withdrew her hand.

'That is so...weird,' she breathed. 'Do you think Dimentio has the other half on _his_?'

Fawful nodded. 'I have certainty.'

Mimi stared again at the beating heart. 'This is gonna get bad...isn't it?'

'I am hoping not!' Fawful said, a shiver running up his spine.

'You know Fawful...' Mimi smirked. 'I don't see any muscles on ya.'

Fawful immediately turned went hot and did up his top, scrambling for his cloak. 'I...I have fury!'

Mimi laughed. 'You're as red as a tomato!'

'Make with the up shut Mimi!'

'Hahaha!'

Fawful trudged along the dusty path to Toad Town, Mimi finally walking at his side again. After a while more of walking, they entered the town. As the group entered the gates, everyone and everything went quiet.

'Uh...' Luigi said. '...hi?'

'!' everyone screamed.

'MAMMA-MI—!'

Mario's exclamation was interrupted as the entire town seemed to rushed towards them, overcome with joy.

'You're back!'

'We miiiiiissed you!'

'Can I take your picture?'

'Jump in the air for me?'

'What the heck is Bowser doing here?'

That got them all quiet again. Then...

'BOWSEEEEEEEER!'

They mob suddenly jumped the Koopa King.

'Get out of our town!'

'Scram!'

'You're not welcome here!'

'Thuh...this is madness!' Bowser cried.

'THIS IS TOAD TOWN!' a rather infantile Toad boy screamed to the Overthere.

'Guys, guys!' Mario yelled, but he wasn't heard.

'GRAAAAAAAHHHH!' Bowser blew fire into the air and everyone jumped off.

'GUYS!' Mario yelled. 'Stop!' They stopped. And they stared. With very confused looks on their faces. 'Everyone with me is good, okay? No need to attack them now.' The murmuring crowd disbanded. 'Now, why are we here Fawful? It was your idea.'

'Righting!' Fawful replied. 'Fawful has an ally in the town of Toads!'

'You're joking, right?' said Luigi. 'You're a villain! How can you have someone on your side HERE?'

'Pah! You mustaches know nothing!' He walked toward the gates that led to Peach's Castle. 'Make with the following, and everything will have clarity.'

'Whoa there!' Mario stopped him. 'We can't just go into Peach's Castle without warning! They'll send in the guards!'

'Pooey to the guards! Fawful is possessing far greater strength then they are anyway!' Without warning he bolted inside the castle doors, ignoring the terrified Toads that fled in his wake and screamed for the guards to come.

'FAWFUL!' the Mario Bros. called. 'Come back!'

'Fawful cannot hear you!' he called laughing. He turned a corner and descended the staircase into the castle's basement with the rest of the party chasing after him yelling. He descended further into the dungeons and drew his gun. He got to a big door with a frozen pane of glass. He attempted to open it, but it was locked tight. He blasted the handle off with his gun and heaved it open with great difficulty.

'Fawful!' Mario yelled. 'What are you doing?'

'Fawful is getting his ally!' He ran into the freezer and adjusted his gun settings until it read "FREEZE." He sat down, opened the gun's workings up, and adjusted the wiring and such, then programmed the setting word into it. He closed it and looked at the setting, which read "MELT."

'Fawful!' Mario ran in. 'Get out of here! Who could possibly be in the freezer!' Fawful pointed and Mario's eyes widened. 'Oh _Grambi..._'

'What?' Bowser lumbered in. 'What's that twerp up to?' He followed Mario's gaze and stopped short. 'You're joking!'

'I...have...fury!' Fawful yelled, and fired the gun.

A bright flash of orange light flashed through the entire room, the concentrated beam of energy sending a wave of heat throughout. The sound of crackling and breaking ice filled the room, followed by water sloshing on the stone floor and then hissing as the water evaporated. A great _thud_ sounded as the frozen being hit the floor.

Fawful regarded the pink creature with utter joy. It was very rotund, with a hot pink body and a lighter pink belly. Thick, meaty arms were tensed to show huge muscles and it's fingers were curled into fists. It had short legs hidden by its round stomach, sharp, black nails sticking out of its toes and fingers. It had a very large snout and huge cheeks, two big tusks curling up out of its mouth, the snout and mouth a tan colour. The rest of its head was the same as its body, and two black, curled horns stuck out of the top. The only thing that made the creature _not_ look like a giant pig completely was the armadillo-esque shell that covered his back and the top of his small tail, black spikes present down it's middle. A white tattoo of what looked like his face from a head-on view was on his upper arms. It wore large, black, metal rings on its wrists, white beads of metal decorating the top and bottom of the sides. Two angry-looking eyes blinked in surprise.

It took a large breath and looked around. Then it grinned, took in a deep breath, and...

'!'

It let out a deafening warlike cry and beat its fists against its chest. After what felt like several minutes of this, it stopped and bashed its fists together, cracking its knuckles.

'Muh muh muh,' Midbus laughed, his deep voice booming. 'Finally. I am free.'


	8. Chapter 8: Wishes

Chapter 8: Wishes

Fawful

Fawful smiled. It was a great, big, huge, toothy, creepy, satisfied, happy grin. It was the grin that Midbus immediately noticed, then regarded the rest of him. His eyes widened in recognition, and his mouth dropped open.

'I say to you, hello, my friend!' Fawful beamed, holding the scalding gun in hand.

'Lord...Lord Fawful?' Midbus, in all his years, had never been more surprised.

'You were perhaps having the guessing that I had deadness?' His smile stayed.

'I...' He dropped to his knees. 'Failed. I have failed.'

'You're darn right you failed!' Bowser shot. 'And so did your puny master too!'

Midbus looked up instantly and stared the Koopa King down, a fire in his eyes. 'YOU!' He jumped up and ran at Bowser.

'Alright, bring it on!' Bowser roared, and followed suit.

'Bowser!' Mario yelled.

'Midbus, have the halting!' Fawful shouted.

Midbus stopped without question. Bowser, however, ran on. Mario, seeing no other solution, jumped up and stomped down hard on the Koopa's scaly foot.

'GRAAAAAAAAAAGH!' Bowser bellowed in pain, clutching his foot.

The giant pig looked confused. 'Lord Fawful. Is the Koopa not our enemy?' he asked.

'That might have had truth the time that was before this time,' Fawful answered. 'But not the time that is currently the present time. The mustaches of Red and Green, as well as the Koopa who is king and the frilly princess who possesses much of the colour of disgustingness, are also being on the side that is Fawful's.' He motioned to Mario. 'The Red mustache will have the clearing of all the doubts.'

And so, Mario explained everything to Midbus, from Fawful's defeat at the hands of Bowser, his transformation into the Dark Fawful Bug and how they defeated him with Bowser's help and destroyed the Dark Star. He explained Fawful's resurrection and how he joined forces with Dimentio, how Dimentio betrayed him and planned to use the Chaos Heart to destroy all worlds and create perfect new ones. He explained everything that had happened up until his release.

'Confused. I am confused,' Midbus grunted.

'Don't try to understand the prophecy, it's the least of your worries,' Mario replied. 'For now, you need to help us stop Dimentio, or we'll all have our games ended.'

Midbus looked to Fawful. The boy nodded. 'Fawful wishes for your company of greatness on this journey!'

Midbus nodded. 'I will join you. Protect.'

'It is sounding excellent!' He spun around. 'Nowing, we are leaving this castle of stupid soon? Fawful is getting tired of it's stupid peachy smells.' Peach pouted slightly.

The Heroes, with their new companion, exited the gate and entered Toad Town again. 'Happy now Fawful?' Mario puffed, irritated.

'I say to you, no! This town is smelling of fungi!'

'It IS Toad Town,' Luigi pointed out.

'You did LIVE HERE for a long time, remember?' Mario said.

'In the castle sewers, no less!' Peach added.

'Fawful had the using of much air freshener.'

'Just shut up,' Mario growled. Fawful frowned. 'Now, we need to know where to go next. Any ideas?'

'Well, wouldn't we need some sorta super powerful thing to destroy the Chaos Heart n'all?' O'Chunks offered.

'That much is obvious,' Kamek remarked.

''Ey!'

'Well, do any of you have any ideas?' Mario asked.

'What about those Crystal Star things?' Luigi asked. 'You were collecting them at one point.'

'Oh, right, those.' Mario remembered them. Seven star-shaped, multifaceted stones created by an ancient demon queen, eventually used against her to seal her soul away and again to destroy her. 'They're gone. They disappeared a while after the Shadow Queen was destroyed.'

'Well...uh...' Luigi gave it some more thought. 'I really don't know then.' No one else did either.

Fawful, however, decided not to idly discuss such matters. He took out a handheld radar and pressed a button. His Headgear turned into a sensory dish and the radar connected, sending pulses of electromagnetic waves out to the surrounding area.

'Hey kid,' Kamek whispered, and went to Fawful. 'What do you have there?'

'I say shoo!' Fawful spat. 'Fawful cannot work while smelly old Koopas are distracting him!'

'Bite me you brat,' Kamek hissed. 'I hate to say it, but you have more of a chance of turning up information than they do, so I'll stick with your progress.'

'Fining!' Fawful huffed.

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

'What is that thing anyway?' the Magikoopa asked.

'This is a radar of excellence!' Fawful beamed. 'It will be telling us where the power sources of largeness are.'

_Beep!_

The radar detected a blip of energy close by. They looked in its direction.

'Merlon's house. Nothing special there,' Kamek commented.

_Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep._

'This is getting us nowh—'

_BEEP! _They jumped at the sudden noise. It was so loud the rest of the group heard it clearly.

'I have a reading!' the Bean exclaimed. 'It is coming from...' His eyes widened and he slapped a hand to his forehead. 'Shooting Star Summit.'

'Well, that would do it,' Kamek remarked.

'Why did I not think of that?' Luigi exclaimed.

'Let's-a go!' Mario said.

Shooting Star Summit had long been described as the Gateway to the Stars by the citizens of the Mushroom Kingdom. It was a beautiful area, with purple grass and leaves. Trees of the same ilk rose up to dazzle the area, the dew on the leaves sparkling with a greater majesty than usual. A worn stone path winded its way up rugged, nature-made steps leading to a spiralling incline of steps to the top of the Summit. Near the base of the majestic tower was a small, modest house which was home to the prophet siblings, Merlow and Merluvlee. However, it wasn't the appearance that made people say such things about it; it was the fact that the top of Shooting Star Summit was the closest place to Star Haven, a realm where the Stars watched over the Kingdom and granted wishes to those with pure hearts.

The Heroes trudged up the path. A shooting star crashed down and bounced in front of them.

'Yikes!' Mimi exclaimed. 'How do you not get hit by them?'

'For some reason, they avoid people,' Mario replied. 'I guess they have minds of their own.'

'This dimension just gets weirder and weirder...' Mimi replied.

They ascended up the steps and stopped in front of the spiralling tower looming in front of them. Fawful gazed up, fascinated. 'Fawful had no idea that this place of starriness had such power!' Fawful exclaimed. He could feel the energy rippling through the air here.

'It's so...pretty,' Mimi breathed, amazed. 'This dimension is so amazing! Nothing like mine at all...'

It took a moment for Fawful to register this, and when he did his head snapped over. 'What?' he asked.

'I said it's nothing like my di—' She stopped abruptly and gasped, putting her hands to her mouth.

'What's teh matter lass?' O'Chunks said.

'N-nothing, nothing...' Mimi said nervously. Fawful narrowed his eyes; he needed more information than this.

'I have annoyance! Fawful is wanting to know _now_!' He stomped his foot.

'It's none of your business Fawful!' Mimi snapped. Fawful was treading on thin ice; too bad he didn't care.

'Fawful,' Blumiere warned. 'Stay out of things you don't belong in.'

'Pah! Fawful is not taking orders from you!'

'Listen you!' Nastasia whirled and fixed him with an icy glare. 'If you don't stop, things aren't gonna be pretty. Now shut up and leave Mimi alone _now_, 'K?

Fawful stuck out his tongue. 'What is a secretary of uselessness going to do to an evil genius such as Faw—'

Nastasia lowered her glasses and affixed Fawful with a stony stare. Her red eyes locked onto his and he suddenly felt himself freeze as red lines whirled around him. He had no control of his own. The woman smiled a satisfied smirk.

_'Leave Mimi alone,'_ she commanded, her words vibrating with a strange force. _'Stop prying.'_ Fawful tried to retort, to tell the secretary that it was none of her business, but he couldn't. His words caught in his throat and all he managed was a choked cough.

'Lord Fawful!' Midbus cried, stepping forward.

'HAVE STOPPING!' Midbus stood still. Nastasia raised her glasses and the lines disappeared. Fawful took in a few breaths and muttered an apology to Mimi.

'Good,' Nastasia said. She turned. 'Let's go now, 'K?' After a moment's hesitation, they ascended the steps.

Fawful was glaring at Nastasia's back as they climbed; how dare she? What in the world had she done? Some sort of hypnosis...bah! 'I have anger...' he whispered to himself.

They reached the top. On most of the flat summit was a circular floor. It was purple, aside from a bright blue in the centre. A star engraving was in the blue centre along with seven smaller star engravings around the sides. The stars sparkled overhead, a few falling from the heavens every now and then. Fawful always found Shooting Star Summit bizarre; it didn't matter what time of day it was when you entered, it always faded to night when you stepped in the boundaries and back to normal when you went out.

'Wow...' Mimi breathed. Her eyes were lit up with awe. Fawful felt his heart rise as he looked at her; she seemed to shine with an otherworldly beauty, her young face full of wonder and innocence. Of course, she wasn't actually innocent; True Mimi was evidence enough of that. The weird thing Fawful had about Mimi was that it was almost impossible to place a definite age on the green child. On one hand, she was relatively small and her face was often young, making her look around Fawful's age. On the other hand, there were times when her features would change without literally _changing_; her eyes would reflect ancient wisdom and maturity and her expression would be sombre, boosting her age up quite a few years. The fact that she sometimes acted like a bratty teenager also added another possible age. Fawful didn't care; nothing would change with age.

Everyone else was mystified as well; Timpani looked amazed. She tugged on Blumiere's arm. 'We should come back here some time when this is all over, don't you think?'

'I do,' Blumiere answered with a smile.

'Ah...' O'Chunks sighed, grinning. 'It reminds me o' the fine days I spent with that even finer lass back in me prime...' He seemed lost in his own world. Bowser simply grunted, remembering his loss at Mario's hands when he stole the Star Rod from Star Haven. Fawful couldn't help but agree with the others; the view was breathtaking.

'So bro,' Luigi said. 'What're we here for?'

Mario smiled. 'What else? For a prayer.'

'A WHAT?' Bowser roared. 'I don't bow down to nobody!'

'Settle down, you don't have to do anything.' Mario walked up to the centre engraving and went down on his knees. Putting his hands together, he began muttering.

'Honourable Star Spirits?' he called. Fawful was perplexed; what was he doing? He didn't know much about the Star Spirits, but he knew that they never came down to the world below for anything. 'It's Mario. We're...um, in trouble again, and we need your help. My wish is for you to come down and see us.'

Moments passed. Nothing happened.

'Guess you're not special enough Mario!' Bowser laughed.

The next moment, Bowser was proven wrong. A blinding flash of light engulfed them all, shining from the sky and coming down in a pillar perfectly around the top of the summit. The eight star engravings glowed with their respective colours of the Star Spirits and flashed. Fawful had to shield his eyes at the risk of being blinded. He decided to take a peek.

Seven beings descended. They were large, star-shaped creatures. The first was bright yellow and had a huge, white mustache. The second was a duller yellow and had a pink bow on her top. The third star was a greyish purple. It had large brown eyebrows and a small mustache of the same colour. It also wore round, white spectacles. The fourth was turquoise and wore a turquoise sailor's hat, a blue ribbon around the rim. The fifth was pink and held on to a long, orange ribbon. The sixth held a book at his side and had a pink bowtie on his upper middle. His cheeks were rosy. The seventh had a small, brown mustache.

'Mario!' the one with the white mustache exclaimed. 'It's been a very long time since I've seen you.'

'Good to see you too Eldstar,' Mario greeted with a smile. Fawful gaped in slack jawed bewilderment; Mario had befriended the _Star Spirits?_ It was impossible!

'Feeling well Mario?' the pink one, Misstar, asked.

'Yeah,' the plumber answered.

'I _still_ tell the Star Kids your story,' the turquoise one, Muskular, beamed. 'The story of how the Great Mario saved all of Star Haven and the whole kingdom!'

'I never get any attention...' Luigi whined, eyeing his brother's sheepish face.

'Be counting yourself lucky, fink-rat,' Fawful growled; unfortunately, Fawful never _didn't_ get attention when he was out in the open, and there were constantly armed guards on his heels.

'Now Mario,' Eldstar said when everyone was done their greetings. 'What has happened that made you call us?'

Mario pointed to the small Void in the sky. 'That.' His short answer was greeted with nervous shuffles in the air. 'That's called the Void. It was created by the Chaos Heart, and we need a Purity Heart to stop it. Now that we thought to call you though, I'd just like your Star Rod to grant a wish for me.'

'Anything Mario, anything,' Eldstar replied.

'I wish the Chaos Heart didn't exist.'

An uncomfortable silence passed. 'Um...well...we can't grant that wish I'm afraid.'

'Why not?' Mario asked, shocked. 'The Star Rod can grant any wish!'

'Couldn't make me beat you,' Bowser pointed out glumly.

'Well, you see...' Eldstar answered with a pause. 'None of the stars knew what that thing was, but I and the other six Star Spirits new that it could spell doom for the world. We tried using the Star Rod to make it vanish, but...'

'But the Star Rod couldn't do it,' answered Skolar, the purple one. 'It backfired and left a huge hole in Star Haven. The stars are rebuilding it as we speak.'

'Oh my!' Peach and Timpani exclaimed simultaneously.

'Sounds bad,' Mimi added.

'It most certainly was!' Skolar said. 'Nothing like that has ever happened before!'

'We concluded that such a task was outside of the Star Rod's regular abilities.'

'Hm...' Everyone turned; Blumiere was in thought. 'This Star Rod...what are its powers?'

'The Star Rod, in effect, can grant any wish that anyone desires, as long as we deem it right to use it for.'

'Only those in this world have wished for things?' the prince pressed.

The old star looked confused. 'Well...yes, of course. I was not aware that there were other worlds.'

'There are. The Void is a hole made of pure darkness that only exists to destroy each and every world there is. When the Void is done with the world, it ceases to exist. The Void is a thing that spans over all dimensions. I think the Star Rod couldn't handle it for two reasons, those being that the Void has enough dark energy to destroy anything and everything in its path and that it spans dimensions other than this one.'

'That would make sense,' Eldstar said.

'Well...that's not good,' Mario said, dejected. 'I was hoping this could be over quickly. How about this? Can you create a Purity Heart for us?'

Blumiere waved the question off before the star could answer. 'Out of the question. The task would drain all of the Star Rod's power and not even be close to full power. Several people from the Tribe of Ancients died creating the first one.'

Mario muttered something under his breath. 'Well that's just peachy,' he grunted.

'Why are you worrying so much?' Misstar huffed. 'You're Mario! You'll pull through. Besides, you have all your friends behind you.' She motioned to the group. 'Including your own brother. You can't go wrong with them.' Luigi grinned at his mention.

'I guess so,' Mario said. 'I was just hoping we had a sure-fire chance. Now...' He clenched his fists. 'The Void will get bigger by each passing day.'

'Don't worry bro!' the green plumber said, patting his brother on the shoulder. 'I'm right here behind you, just like she said!'

'I'll always be here for you Mario,' Peach comforted warmly. 'Just like you're always there for me.'

'Yeah...I guess I'll help to,' Bowser grunted. Kamek just sighed.

'We'll be with you to the bitter end, Hero,' Blumiere said.

'Nothing will keep me from this adventure!' Timpani beamed.

'I'll be 'ere teh lay a beatin' on everyone!' O'Chunks challenged to the world.

Mimi clenched her fists. 'That idiot clown isn't going to get away with what he's done!' Fawful noticed a strange tone to the green girl's voice, so feint he barely noticed. He painfully recalled the way she had been treated in Castle Bleck; she had more than just an obligation. This was personal.

Fawful said nothing. Everyone turned to look at him, expecting him to say some sort of confirmation. He didn't. 'You!' he said to the seven creatures. 'You spirits who are calling yourself stars even though you clearly are lacking in cosmic gases and light!' He scuttled up to them.

'Ah, you,' Eldstar said, a hint of irritation lining his usually controlled tone. 'Fawful. What is it?'

'Fawful is having a wish!' he said firmly.

The old star shook his head. 'Not another one. We haven't granted your wishes because they aren't good and worthy of the Star Rod's power.'

Fawful glared at him; ever since moving to the Mushroom Kingdom and learning of Star Haven, Fawful had constantly made wishes to them. Each and every one had been malevolent and directed at his two most hated enemies. 'You stars of stupidness! That is not what Fawful is wanting.'

'Well then, what is it that you want?'

'Fawful is simply having one wish: that all of Fawful's inventions would be warped out of the castle that is belonging to Dimentio and right _there_.' He pointed at the ground a foot or so away from him.

'Well...that spans other dimensions so I don't know if it will work...'

'Just make with the wishing!' Fawful spat.

Eldstar sighed and the Star Rod appeared in the middle of the circle of stars. They all closed their eyes and began to glow. They pointed at the Star Rod, releasing light into a pinpoint in the middle of the star on the Star Rod. Light blasted from it with intensity. 'Star Rod...' the Star Spirits said simultaneously. 'Grant Fawful's wish!'

There was a flash of light from the Star Rod, then another flash of light where Fawful pointed. As the light receded and Fawful uncovered his eyes, he saw every invention, both complete and incomplete, laying in a heap on the ground.

'I HAVE GLAD!' Fawful yelled, and ran to his inventions.

'"I have glad?" one of the stars muttered.

'Fawful also wishes for a large, strong cloth and rope and a big, strong stick!'

A small _poof_ and there they were.

'Midbus, could you be helping Fawful?' He had already begun to wrap his inventions in a clump in the cloth and tie it to the stick.

'Yes. Of course.' Midbus walked over.

'Be carrying these until Fawful can create a method of storage that is better than this one.' Midbus picked it up without complaint. Fawful looked at the Star Spirits. 'Since you have granted the wish of Fawful...' He shifted. 'Thanking you.' Ugh, he felt disgustingly more like a good guy every moment.

'You're welcome!' Eldstar said, surprised.

'Well...' Mario muttered. 'I guess coming here was a waste of time.'

'Don't say that!' Peach said. 'The Star Spirits could come in handy when we need to create the Purity Heart.'

'Yeah,' Mimi added. 'And he got his inventions back.' She pointed to the Bean.

'True.' It seemed Mario's spirits were a little higher. He snapped his fingers and grinned. 'I know what we should do: we need to go see Merlon!'

'But Merlon's in Flipside,' Mimi pointed out.

'Not that Merlon, the one in Toad Town,' Luigi corrected.

Mimi raised an eyebrow. 'There's another Merlon? Huh.'

'More than you'd imagine,' Mario said with a laugh. The group turned and descended down the steps, leaving just Fawful. He stared at the Star Spirits, a question dangling on his tongue.

'Fawful?' the pink bowed star, Mamar, asked. 'Are you not joining them?'

Mimi noticed his absence and walked back. 'Fawfie?' she called, making the boy cringe slightly for two reasons: one, he was a villain and villains were never called such things, and two...he kind of liked it.

'Fawful has one wish of finality,' he said to the Star Spirits. A question had been on his mind. 'What is the date of today?' They told him, and Fawful's heart pounded.

'Fawful? What's wrong?' Mimi asked.

Fawful shook his head. 'Nothing is the matter.' He forced a smile. 'No worries for Fawful.'

Mimi gave him a look. 'If you say so.' She grabbed his hand. 'Come on, we have to catch up now!' She ran a bit with him and he let go, running at her side. They rejoined the group, but Fawful lagged behind slightly. This was the day of every year that he both loved and hated; it filled him with a strange combination of pride, happiness, and sadness. He shook a bit, remembering the many years before where on this very day he and Cackletta would celebrate in their own, evil way. This was Fawful's birthday, in a sense; it was the day that Cackletta had first taken him in.

Fawful, under his own breath so the others couldn't hear, sang. 'Happy birthday to you...' he recited, his voice shaky. 'Happy birthday to y-you...' He closed his eyes and a tear fell onto the ground. 'Happy birthday to Faawfuuul...happy birthday to...y-you...'


	9. Chapter 9: Fortunes

Chapter 9: Fortunes

Fawful

The giant blue doors, each with half of a Power Star painted on them, closed, blocking the path to Peach's Castle until someone wanted to leave or enter it again. The Heroes walked through the Mushroom Kingdom's main city, their spirits heightened and their excitement for adventure unparallel. They turned a corner until they found the building they were looking for: the blue, starry house with the spinning roof. Mario extended his fist and knocked.

'Merlon is out,' they heard an old man call from inside the house.

Mimi frowned. 'We know you're in there!' she called. Mario knocked again.

'Merlon is out!' the man snapped.

'Oh you've gotta be kidding me,' Mimi huffed. She banged both of her fists hard on the door. 'OPEN UP YOU IDIOT!' she screamed.

'MERLON IS OUT!'

Without warning the door swung open and hit her in the face, revealing an old man in a dark purple cloak held together by a green orb with a yellow star in it. He wore red shoes and had a large mustache, though not as large as the Merlon's from Flipside. Two green eyes glowed from beyond his hood. The green girl fell backwards with a crash, clutching her nose. 'OW!' she wailed.

'Why are you all knocking on my—' He looked and noticed the entire group. 'Mario, it's you! And fair princess Peach!' He looked at Bowser. 'Er...' He leaned into Mario's ear. 'Why in the Stars above is Bowser here?'

'Bowser's travelling with us,' Luigi explained.

Merlon regarded the green plumber. 'Oh, I'm sorry, I don't believe we've met. I'm Merlon.'

Luigi gaped. 'I'm Luigi! You know, the other Mario Brother? The one who's also saved Peach before?'

Merlon shook his head. 'I'm sorry, I've never heard of you.' Luigi buried his face in his hands, then threw it back.

'WAAAAAAAAH!' he wailed. 'Why does no one pay attention to Weeeeegeeeee?' The rest of the group had already walked inside, closing the door and leaving Luigi outside. 'Uh...guys? Guys?' He knocked on the door.

'Merlon is out!'

'So,' Merlon said as he locked the door, preventing anyone from interrupting. 'What brings all of you here?' He seemed to catch himself on something and coughed. 'Sorry, I'm afraid I forgot my manners.' He looked to Blumiere and his friends. 'Who are all of you? I don't believe we've met.'

Blumiere smiled and did a bow. 'I am Blumiere, former prince of the Tribe of Darkness. Pleased to make your acquaintance.' He wrapped his arm around the girl at his side. 'This is my wife, Lady Timpani.'

'Pleased to meet you,' she said politely.

'Pleased to meet you too.' Merlon did a bow of his own. 'I hope your union has not been in vain.'

'Of course not,' the dark prince replied.

Nastasia extended a hand. 'I'm a loyal follower of Blumiere. My name is Nastasia.'

Merlon shook it gratefully. 'Good to see the lord has a friend like you!' Nastasia managed a small smile.

'Name's O'Chunks!' The burly man grinned and shook Merlon's hand. He leaned in. ''Ey...do ya think you could tell me my fortune? I wanna see what's gonna 'appen in my later years.'

'That, my friend, would be a grave mistake,' Merlon warned. The old prophet had done peoples' fortunes before, and they had always come true...unfortunately, they always complained that their lives weren't exciting when they knew what was going to happen.

'Teehee!' Mimi giggled. 'A real live fortune teller!' Fawful felt his heart do back flips as she laughed. 'I'm Mimi!'

Merlon smiled and bent down, kissing her hand. 'A privilege to meet you Mimi.' The girl giggled again. Merlon looked at Fawful. 'Ah yes.' He glared silently through his dark hood. 'I know exactly who you are.' Fawful glared back. 'Fawful. Once a mere minion, then an evil genius. Your antics spelled disaster for this kingdom! You created the worst epidemic the Mushroom Kingdom had ever seen and you nearly plunged it into darkness forever. I cannot fathom why these Heroes are helping you.'

'Because,' Fawful answered. 'Fawful has much to be losing, just like the Heroes of goody-goodness.'

'How true indeed, how true...' Merlon seemed to muse over something. 'I suppose my personal feelings won't change those of Mario, will they?'

'Not at all,' Mario answered.

'Well, we should not hinder ourselves with idle chat any longer now should we?' Merlon asked rhetorically. 'What brings you all into my humble abode?'

'Same thing as everyone else.' The red-clad plumber smiled. 'We would like to know where our quest will take us first.'

'Ah yes, a fortune telling. I should have known.'

'Guess your fortune telling is getting rusty,' Mimi laughed.

Merlon sighed. 'Such a travesty comes with age.' He peered down into his crystal ball, shining blue and sparkling radiantly. 'It has been a very long time since this has been put to use. My fortunes can be done with tea leaves and palm readings. Simple things. My crystal ball has much power...' The group stared at it, as if they expected it to reveal the meaning of life. It didn't. 'By looking into the mighty powers of the great beyond, I can reveal your future. At a price.'

'Oh yeah, forgot about that.' Mario rummaged in his pockets for five coins.

'Keep your money,' Merlon interrupted. 'Coins are not what I require.'

Mario looked like Merlon had just announced that his readings were fake. 'No money? What do you want then?'

'A promise: you must promise me that whatever I reveal to you, you will not despair. These are dark times, and I do not know what I will find in the future.'

'We promise,' Mario promised on behalf of all of them.

'Well then...' Merlon peered into the ball. 'Oh crystal ball, ancient tool of my tribe...' He ran his hands in odd motions over its surface. 'Delve into your powers...seek the future!' The ball glowed mysteriously, stars dancing around inside. 'Aid these Heroes on their quest, show them what awaits them!' The ball became engulfed in light. Small points of light spun around on the walls; looking up, Fawful saw that they were the product of a large disco ball. 'Now...let us see what your destiny is...'

He paused, perplexed. He peered in further. 'That certainly is strange.'

'What?' Mario asked. Merlon didn't answer.

'What?' The entire group exclaimed the same word at the same time.

'This is strange, it's showing me...' He frowned. 'Odd.'

'WHAT IS IT?' everyone yelled.

'See for yourselves.'

They peered in and saw...nothing.

'Is this a joke?' Blumiere glared at the old man.

'I'm afraid not. It seems my crystal ball is malfunctioning, trying to see this far into the future.'

'Let's try looking a little closer to the present,' Mario suggested. 'Where's our first destination?'

'By the looks of things...the Beanbean Kingdom.'

Mario's face lit up in recognition. Fawful's eyes widened and he staggered backwards. 'No! Fawful does not accept that!' There was no way he could go back there...no way at all.

'This is bad,' Mario said. 'If we go there, they'll detain Fawful faster than you can breathe.'

'If you do not go there, you have no chance of succeeding,' Merlon replied. 'There are many strands of the future. This one is the only one that has any possibility of success.'

Fawful gritted his teeth as his heart began to pound in his chest. 'Why...WHY?'

'Fawful, what's the matter?' Mimi exclaimed. 'It's just a country!'

'It is the country of Fawful!' the Bean cried. 'Returning is bittersweet...my home gives me FURY!' He pounded the wall. He felt awful; WHY did it have to be there? He had vowed to never return there again, and now where were they headed? Home.

Mario sighed. 'Well then stay here. You'll only slow us down anyway.'

'I'm afraid that simply won't do, Mario.'

Mario looked at Merlon. 'Why not?'

'Because he cannot be trusted.'

'WHAT?' Fawful spat. 'Fawful has been...good! Why does Fawful not have trusting? He has not had the killing of the mustaches or the kidnapping of the princess!'

'You have a criminal record a mile long,' Merlon answered calmly. 'And all of that aside...it is very difficult to trust you when you give off such a powerful negative force.'

This was met with confusion. 'Negative force?' Kamek repeated. 'You mean like dark energy?' Merlon nodded. 'I don't know what you're talking about. I don't sense anything from this kid.'

'Ah, but you are not me.' Merlon coughed. 'It is feint, yes. Dormant. But there.'

'That's impossible,' Kamek huffed.

'Fawful, I am going to have to ask you to remove your shirt.'

'Whying? What right are you possessing that can make you command Fawful so?'

'Just do it.'

The entire group stared suspiciously at him, as if daring him to defy. Reluctantly, Fawful showed them his chest.

The entire group jumped. 'WHAT THE UNDERWHERE?' Kamek bellowed and almost backed up into the wall. He scrambled for his wand.

'So now it can be felt.' Merlon shifted uncomfortably. 'Intensely so.'

Blumiere's eyes bore into Fawful's. 'What in the name of Jaydes is that?' From the sound of his tone, he didn't need an answer.

'The Chaos Heart!' Peach exclaimed. The entire room went into uproar. Fawful did up his shirt again.

'QUIET!' Midbus brought a large foot down on the floor. 'Silence! I want it!' They stopped.

'I am thanking you...' Fawful muttered. 'Fawful will go, if that will make the old man with the silly beard be full with the happy!' He was angrier than he had been in a long time. How dare he be put on the spot like that?

'The Chaos Heart is not to be trifled with!' Blumiere yelled. 'You could kill us all!'

'Be quiet!' Mario demanded. 'Fawful's coming with us. I don't care how much dark power he has, he still has no reason to kill us. He comes.'

Fawful leaned against the wall and clutched his head; the entire ordeal was giving him a headache. 'So,' he said. 'Beanbean Kingdom.' He sighed. 'It has been a time of longness since Fawful was there.' He turned to the door and walked out, knocking Luigi onto his rear in the process.

'I guess our adventure begins here...' Mario said with less vigour than normal; Fawful could be an issue. They walked outside, the entire group feeling less cheerful than they had been before.

'Jeez...' Luigi said, looking from each person to the next. 'What cloud rained on your parade?'

Merlon

Merlon, the famed prophet of Toad Town, watched as the secretary closed the door after all the others had gone. With the room empty of Heroes, he slumped down in his chair and hung his head. After a moment's hesitation, he spoke.

'Did you hear all of that?' he asked to the air.

'Every single word,' came a voice not unlike his own. He watched as Merlon and Nolrem from Flipside and Flopside flipped into the dimension.

'This was not ideal,' Nolrem said.

Toad Town Merlon shook his head. 'No, it wasn't.'

'Was it really necessary to show them the boy's ailment?' the other Merlon asked.

The fortune teller sighed. 'Yes. There would be no other way. If the Heroes left without him...' He let the sentence finish with the pause. No one needed telling.

Flipside's Merlon held the white prophecy, the Light Prognosticus, in his hands. It was open to the second page. He read a single line to himself over and over again. 'Are you still reading that line?' Nolrem asked. 'It is no use worrying. Prophecies are seldom correct.'

'The Light Prognosticus was before,' the twin replied.

'Oh, my dimensional counterpart,' Merlon from Toad Town sighed. 'Let it go. Mario has never failed. Ever. He will succeed.'

_'I wouldn't be too sure!'_

They all jumped and looked around wildly. 'Who goes there?' Nolrem bellowed.

_'Ah ha ha! Oh the joys of invisibility!'_ Dimentio warped into the visible spectrum. 'How goes the meeting, prophets?'

'Dimentio!' the prophets from Flip and Flopside exclaimed at once.

'Ah, Merlon and Nolrem! It's been a long time.' He looked to Toad Town's Merlon. 'And you, I don't believe we've met. Merlon, correct? Such confusion.'

'What in the world are you doing in my house?' Merlon exclaimed angrily.

'Oh nothing,' the jester replied. 'Simply acquiring some...information.' He laughed. 'Fawful's little display cleared up a lot of questions now didn't it? Ah ha ha!' He beat a fist against his heart. 'He and I, joined at the chest by the Chaos Heart! What a twist to an already suspenseful show!'

The house's owner glared. He stepped forward, lightning crackling from his fingertips. 'Get out of my house,' he seethed.

'Ah ah ah, don't get magic-happy!' Dimentio laughed. 'I have yet to reveal the cherry on top!' He reached into his poncho and pulled out the Dark Prognosticus. He spun it on his finger. 'Such an interesting book, wouldn't you agree?'

'I'll count to three...' Merlon spat. 'One...two...!'

Dimentio snapped his fingers and Merlon winced as his electrified hand spun around and slapped him in the face. 'Oh hush, you! I've already seen the line written in the Light Prognosticus. Quite shocking really. The only line in the book, aside from the blurb on the front page, correct?'

_'This book is the light that shines through the darkness,' _Flipside Merlon cited. 'Yes.'

'Right, I remember that. Then there's the blurb in this.' He grinned. _'The owner of this book is destined for misfortune.'_

Nolrem chuckled. 'How fitting.'

'What is it that you've come to show us then?' Toad Town Merlon asked.

'Ah, right, I saw the line on the Light Prognosticus' second page, and it was interesting...' Dimentio opened up the Dark Prognosticus to its second page. 'Have a look at this.' He turned it around so they could see.

All three went ghostly pale.

'Ah ha ha! See? Shocking! Ahahahahahaha!'

'This...this is impossible...' Flipside Merlon breathed.

'Absolutely impossible...' his counterpart whispered.

'This can't be...' Nolrem choked.

'Ah ha ha! Oh but it is!' Dimentio was laughing with demented glee. 'It appears we have a new prophecy!'

Merlon couldn't believe what he was reading. On the second page of both the Light and the Dark Prognosticuses, the exact same line was printed:

_The Void will swallow all._


	10. Chapter 10: Flight

Chapter 10: Flight

Merlon

Merlon paced the floor of his starry blue house nervously. His dimensional counterparts from Flipside and Flopside watched him, equally as nervous.

'You know...' Nolrem said. 'If you keep doing that you'll put a mark in the floor.'

'Quiet!' the fortune teller snapped. 'I'm thinking!'

Flipside's Merlon read the line again. '"The Void will swallow all..."' he whispered. 'This does not bode well.'

'Not indeed,' Nolrem replied. 'If this is true...then all of our efforts will be for nothing.'

'There has to be a way around this!' Toad Town Merlon cried. 'Merlon, what exactly are the purposes of the Light and Dark Prognosticuses again?'

'The Dark Prognosticus,' the other Merlon replied, 'was written to foretell the destruction of each and every world. It would have held true, if not for the Light Prognosticus. That one was written by my ancestors specifically to counteract the Dark Prognosticus so that its prophecy wouldn't be set in stone.'

'In that case,' Toad Town's Merlon replied. 'Is it not strange that both the Light AND the Dark Prognosticuses foretell the same thing?'

'Yes...that is very strange indeed. If anything, the Light one should say "The Void will disappear."'

'Then again...' Nolrem cut in. 'I don't believe this was expected by anything.' His statement was met with confusion. 'What I mean is that when the Chaos Heart was destroyed the first time, the Prognosticuses were rendered useless. Now though...' He sighed. 'Dimentio altered both, removed their texts. With the unexpected, unforetold birth of a new Chaos Heart, the prophecies are, as they say, out of whack. In short...' He coughed. 'There is no more one-or-the-other. Now they all point to the same thing.'

'Destruction,' both Merlons muttered. The pause that followed was more than uncomfortable.

'What are we to do then?' Toad Town Merlon asked. 'We can't just sit here doing nothing.'

Flipside's mage sighed. 'I'm afraid that's all we _can_ do. We can simply hope for the best.'

'What IS the best?' the other Merlon shot. 'Both prophecies point to destruction! There IS no best!'

'How long have you lived here?' Nolrem asked.

Merlon was taken aback by the sudden question. 'I have lived in Toad Town for many a year,' he answered.

'And how often does Mario, despite the odds, come out victorious?'

His eyes narrowed. 'Every single time. He has never failed us.'

'Even though it seems hopeless...Mario, the first Hero of Prophecy, the hero of the Mushroom Kingdom, the hero of the _Universe_...is combating the darkness. I'd say we have at least a small chance at victory.'

The fortune teller slumped back in his chair. 'I suppose.' He turned and looked into his crystal ball. 'This is the only thing I can do...' he muttered. He stared into its reflective surface.

Only time would show the outcome of this battle. Until then, his crystal ball would do for the little things.

Fawful

Fawful stared out the window of Princess Peach's large pink airplane. The sun shined through the sky, illuminating everything. A blanket of white clouds covered the planet's surface from view. Despite the fact that he despised the girlyness of the plane he was travelling in, he had to admit that it was well beyond First Class. There were so many plush, comfortable seats, the floor had a soft, pink rug on it, each seat had a table for it and the latest movies, and the bathrooms were spotless. Yep, this was the life...

It was unfortunate, then, that Fawful wasn't enjoying those luxuries.

He sat in a cold, grey, metallic storage room. Boxes were pushed to the side, each displaying the official symbol of the Mushroom Kingdom (the Royal Shroom, which was a lordly-looking Mushroom with crowns on its cap instead of dots). There were no chairs, the place was hard and uncomfortable, and it stank of various foods and other goods.

Fawful kicked himself mentally; _why_ had he done this?

The answer was in the middle of the room. It was a small, metal cube the size of a Rubix Cube. It shone with a silver brilliance, blue, circular lights glowing, one for each side save one. On the last side was a small green button. The topside of the button had Fawful's grinning face on it. He just couldn't resist it. There was only one problem...

He pressed the button. Nothing.

The accursed thing wouldn't work!

Fawful threw up his hands. 'I have frustration!' he bellowed. His cry echoed off the walls, creating verbal torment in his skull as it rebounded back at him. He clutched his head. 'Ouch...' He shook his cranium. He needed to get this to work, otherwise he wouldn't leave; he was too stubborn to.

He sat down and took a screwdriver, opening one of the sides to reveal the panel he was looking for. The problem seemed to come from there. Everything was working perfectly...except for the flux inducer. The thing that had to work 100% perfectly in order for it to work wasn't working. He frowned; it didn't make sense. Everything was perfect...perhaps he was missing something.

It clicked: a power source.

He groaned; of course. He had already put a highly concentrated power cell into the cube's core, but he failed to realize that the flux inducer was so highly active that it needed its own power source. Unfortunately, he didn't have a free one with him, as he had used the last one in the cube's core. Seeing no other option, he removed the power core from one of his blaster prototypes and, after tinkering with the flux inducer's workings to accommodate a power source, put it in. He screwed the metal casing back on and pressed the button.

The cube glowed to life. Fawful grinned. 'I have success!' he shouted, then groaned as the echo reverberated around him. It was good that he had wired the cube not to work if it wasn't working perfectly, or it would have blown up in his hands if he had tried to use it.

He walked over to his inventions and pressed the glowing light marked "power." It released a beam of light, sucking them all in. He also decided to keep the rope, stick, and cloth. He then pressed the light marked "depower" and it shut off. Then he pressed the light marked "expel." A small holographic display shone and he selected the stick from the list of items. The cube shot out the stick. It was perfectly as it was before. He then sucked it up again and chose the "all" option. It shot everything out at once. Then he sucked them back in and pressed the button on the top. It shut off.

Fawful smiled happily; nothing beat the thrill of completing an invention. He got up and prepared to leave the cargo area, but stopped on the way out. He looked to one of the boxes. He grinned as that villainous feeling climbed up into his gut; perhaps stealing one or two things wouldn't hurt. He opened one of the crates: just food. He closed it. He opened another; a bunch of supplies for the plane itself. Useless. He opened another and saw it filled to the brim with various kinds of Mushrooms. He decided to take a few Ultra Shrooms; they would be useful. Shutting the box, he exited the storage room.

He climbed the steps to the passengers' aisle and opened the door. Everyone was there doing their own thing, but it mostly involved sitting around. Mario and Luigi were playing cards and Midbus and Bowser seemed to be bonding (weirdly enough) and Fawful suspected it must be through comparing muscle mass. Blumiere and Timpani were just sitting and enjoying their company. Fawful's heart thudded as he thought of Mimi; how he wished they could be like the married couple he was regarding, just sitting and enjoying their company. He looked for her and found her sitting alone, staring into the clouds. Perhaps they could after all. He sat in the seat across from her own, which faced her.

'I say to you, hello,' he greeted, and smiled.

'Hey Fawfie!' she replied with a smile. 'How was it? Didja finish your thingymabob?'

'Fawful has!' He pulled it out. 'It is being a device of brilliance! It is called the Spacial Matter Scrambling Device.'

'What does it do?'

'It has the scrambling of the atoms of things,' he explained. 'The atoms of the things that need carrying are broken down into the raw sections. The protons, neutrons, and electrons dissolve into the space-time continuum and become a gaseous cloud where the hyperstatic energies are greatly reduced and can make them appear into the cube's spacial storage unit and allow them to be carried in the form of unified photons!'

Mimi simply gave him a blank look. 'Uuuhhh...in English please?'

Fawful frowned; scientific genius was never appreciated. 'It can be storing many things of usefulness that we will be requiring for our journey of toughness.'

'Or Engrish works too,' she laughed. 'Glad to be in where it's comfortable?'

'Oh yes!' Fawful sighed. 'The room that is utilized for the storing of objects had the coldness! It had much discomfort.'

Mimi stretched. 'I'm so bored. All I've done is stare out the window and think.'

'What have you been contemplating?'

'Oh, just...everything.' She waved her hand. 'This is so insane. I can't believe we have another Chaos Heart on our hands, that Dimentio's back, that you...' Her voice trailed off. Fawful didn't need to ask to know what she was going to say; the thump of the Chaos Heart in his chest was enough of an answer. 'Why in the worlds did he do all of this?'

'Perhaps we will forever not be knowing,' the boy replied.

'Maybe...' She sighed again. 'Why are you wanted in the Beanbean Kingdom?'

'Righting, that.' Fawful grinned evilly, causing Mimi to sink back in her chair. 'Back when Fawful was just a toady, Cackletta and the one who is me had the hatching of many evil plans! One of them involved the stealing of the voice of a fair princess.' He pointed to Peach. 'The very bad Bowser and the mustache brothers who I hate gave chase.' He sighed. 'Everything had the failing in the end.'

'They always win,' Mimi agreed. 'They beat me. Three times.'

'Fawful has such disbelief that you were once a girl of villainy!' he exclaimed. 'You are looking so sweet and powerless!'

'Powerless?' She glared at him. 'Do I _need_ to transform again?' Fawful's nervous shaking of the head answered her question. 'I'm a lot meaner than you might think Fawfie.' She grinned, pure malice reeling off her. 'I'm not nice.'

Fawful shuddered. 'If only we had had the greetings when you were hatching your evil schemes!'

'Well, if we had won, you'd be dead,' she said.

'Righting.' Fawful looked at Mimi simply for that purpose. In the glow of the sunlight, she looked ravishing. 'Mimi,' he said nervously.

'Hm...yeah?'

'Fawful wishes to say...that is, he...uh...um...'

'What is it?'

He forced himself to spit it out. 'Like a bird that has exoticness and feathers of brightness you are having much beauty!' he sputtered quickly.

He had spoken too fast. 'Um...what? I didn't get that.'

'You...um...bah! Never of the minding!' He hung his head.

'Uh...okay then, whatever.'

'I have fury...'

Mimi giggled. 'You talk so funny. I bet you failed English class a lot.'

'Th-that is not of importance!' Fawful's cheeks grew hot as memories of Cackletta's failed attempts to teach him proper English went through his mind. 'No more talking of that!'

Mimi smirked. 'You failed English class, you failed English class!' she taunted in a sing-song voice.

Fawful growled. 'Such fury...'

Mimi leaned back in her chair. 'You know what? I wonder if they've forgotten about you there.'

'Ha!' Fawful chuckled irritably. 'That does not have likeliness. Along with the Great Cackletta, Fawful was being the most wanted villain in the kingdom.'

'And that means they'll probably arrest you without a second thought,' the green girl commented.

'They will not even be having a thought of first before arresting me.'

The lights on the plane flickered and the world around them shook violently. The women screeched, the men yelled, Mario yelled out a warning.

The pilot's voice crackled to life on the speakers. 'We have encountered some slight _ow!_ Some, uh, slight turbulence. Please remain seated with your seatbelts securely fastened.'

Unfortunately, no one had their seatbelts fastened. Mimi flew headfirst out of her seat. Fawful automatically lunged and grabbed her before tumbling to the ground himself. The two children tumbled to the floor, Fawful taking the thud on the ground, Mimi's arms wrapped around his waist. She screamed. Luigi screamed louder.

It began to settle down. The lights stopped flickering and the world stopped shaking. 'The turbulence has come to a stop. Feel free to undo your seatbelts and wander about.' The pilot's words seemed like a cruel joke.

Mimi shivered. Fawful suddenly realized where they were. They were laying on the floor in between their seats. Mimi's arms were around Fawful's waist and his around hers. She shuddered, the vibrations making Fawful do the same. She breathed deeply; she was clearly frightened. Her head was buried in Fawful's arms. Her breathing slowed to a normal speed. She laid there for a moment, just breathing. Fawful felt suddenly very calm. The world's woes seemed to disappear in Mimi's embrace, her every touch like waves of calm. His heart was completely inflated; this was the first time in a long time when he had felt completely devoid of a negative emotion. Several moments passed.

'Um...Mimi?' Fawful whispered.

She gave a jolt and jumped up to her feet. 'Oh, uh, whoops!' she exclaimed nervously. 'I guess I, uh, got a little scared there...' She attempted to smile and helped Fawful to his feet.

'Um...thanking you Mimi,' he thanked. They both sat down and were quiet for a long time.

Mimi was deep in thought. She was looking out the window again, a confused look in her eyes. She sighed. 'Fawful...' she said. 'Thanks for...for catching me.' Her cheeks went a little red at these words.

The Bean smiled. 'You are being most welcome.' He wanted to compliment her again, as he had tried to do before. He had the words, but no will to say them. It was too hard. A question arose in his mind. 'Mimi, I am wanting to ask you a question.'

'What is it?'

'Many things of misfortune have happened to you since you were in the party that was celebrating Halloween,' he said. As he said this, he couldn't help but marvel at the words; that time seemed so long ago. 'Dimentio gave you much pain and suffering. What are your feelings of him?'

Mimi seemed to change before his eyes. Sadness enveloped her, making her look many years older. She slumped and hid her face in her hands. 'Dimentio and I...' She sniffed, and Fawful knew tears were being held back. 'We just...worked together, helping the Count make a perfect world...or we thought so.' She sniffed again and gave a light sob. 'It was hard work. I was always afraid of failure and punishment. Even in my spare time, back when the Count was trying to find the couple that would create the Chaos Heart, I just had bad luck. I could never get a boyfriend, I was shunned because of my powers...everything was just awful.' She grabbed a tissue and wiped her nose. 'But Dimentio, he...he helped me.'

'"Helped you?"' Fawful repeated.

'Yeah...he made me feel better. Sometimes he'd save me from people or just talk to me when I needed to. Of course, he also made fun of me and stole my diary, so it was hard to tell what he thought of me.' She laughed a hollow laugh. 'When he betrayed us, I was heartbroken. I didn't know if he was going to spare me or not, but I didn't care. I just wanted him to go away and never come back. But...' She wiped a tear away. 'Now he's back.'

Fawful waited, but she didn't continue. 'You did not have the answering of my question.'

Mimi glared for a moment, then softened. 'I don't know what to think about him anymore. One minute I think he might actually love me after all...the next he's trying to kill me. I don't know what I feel...'

'Are you still loving him?' he asked.

'I...I don't know. I don't feel good about it.'

'Maybe you should have the forgetting.'

'It's not that simple Fawful...' She sobbed again. 'I've never met someone like him...he's always protected me...until now.'

Fawful waited a moment before replying. 'Fawful will protect you. He had the protecting of you before.'

'Oh shut up,' Mimi growled. Fawful would have felt bad, but the effect was ruined by her smile. 'You're always trying to impress me. You're so transparent.'

Fawful smiled a wide smile. 'Is Fawful impressing you as you say?' Mimi just giggled; Fawful knew enough that that meant "yes." He grabbed a tissue. 'No more of the tears,' he said softly, handing her the tissue.

She smiled again and wiped them away. 'You aren't normally this nice are you?'

Fawful giggled himself. 'No of the waying. Fawful has a reputation of evilness, after all.'

'Just to me then, huh?' She giggled again as Fawful's cheeks turned red. He nodded. 'Well, that's nice of you.'

Fawful looked out the window. The clouds were as wondrous as ever. 'The view Fawful is seeing...it has niceness.'

Mimi nodded. 'Yeah. It's really beautiful.'

Fawful smiled and willed words into his mouth. 'Almost matching the beauty of you.' Mimi laughed and said 'Jeez, you're really trying aren't you?' Her cheeks flushed all the same.

The plane touched down hours later with a sickening jerk and Fawful was grateful to have his seatbelt on this time. The pilot's voice crackled to life on the intercom again. 'We have arrived at our destination, the Beanbean Kingdom. We hope you have enjoyed flying with us today. Please exit in a single file line and make sure not to leave any luggage aboard the plane. Please come again.' Fawful gathered up his Storage Cube, Headgear, and blaster and put them under his cloak. He would need to be inconspicuous in this country. He unbuckled and stood up. Mimi did the same.

'It was nice talking to you,' Mimi said. 'I didn't know you had so much to tell.'

Fawful grinned. 'I am saying the same to you!'

He waited until everyone else was gone and then stepped out to leave. Mimi caught him by the arm and he turned around. 'Yes?' he asked.

She leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. Fawful felt his legs turn to jelly and his face grow hot. 'You're very sweet Fawfie. Thanks for making me feel better.'

'You...you have welcome...' he said, all the breath out of him.

'We'd better go,' she advised. 'Don't wanna keep them waiting.' She left the little Bean standing alone. He wobbled and put his hand to his cheek. He resisted the urge to shout at this point. He turned, ran down into the storage room, closed the door, and did it there.

'I HAVE ELATION!' he screamed, not even minding the deafening echo bouncing off the cold walls. He had never felt so giddy in his life. That small act had filled him with insurmountable joy. He laughed; nothing had ever felt like this. 'I HAVE LOVE! I HAVE LOVE I HAVE LOVE I HAVE LOVE!' Not even the dark presence of the Chaos Heart could turn his mood around. After a little more of this, he calmed down. He exited the room and jogged down the hall. As he made to exit, a white-gloved hand gripped his shoulder.

'Don't go any farther!' came the voice of Mario.

'Fink-rat!' Fawful hissed. 'I had much fear!'

'Listen, the Bean Queen and Lady Lima are out there.' Fawful's heart skipped a beat; they were right outside the plane? 'Stay here. Only go out when I give the word, okay?' Fawful gulped and nodded.

'Mario!' the Bean Queen exclaimed as he exited the plane. 'It's been a very long time since I last saw you!'

Mario bowed. 'Greetings, Your Highness,' he said, smiling. Fawful noticed that a very large crowd of people had gathered to see their heroes again; he suddenly felt very nervous about going out.

'Oh none of that! You're more revered in this country than I!'

Mario looked up, surprised. 'Really?'

'Well...almost.' Mario laughed. 'In any case, Princess Peach has told me of your troubles before you exited the plane. We'll do anything in our power to aid you.'

Lady Lima bowed. 'We will give you access to any resources you need,' she added.

Mario smiled. 'Thanks for your help. It's greatly appreciated.'

'OH HO HO HO!' the Bean Queen laughed. Fawful felt sick; he had always despised that accursed woman's laugh. 'No thanks needed! You are truly the Beanbean Kingdom's greatest heroes. You and your courageous brother.' Fawful snirked; clearly she hadn't seen him when confronted with danger, Luigi laughed sheepishly, blushing.

'Um...just a warning to you,' Mario said. 'Someone else is with us who you probably won't like to see.'

The Queen frowned. 'I can't imagine who it would be.'

'Well...uh...he's in the plane right now, so—'

'Well, then call him out to us so we may greet him!'

'Okay...' Mario turned to the plane. 'You can come out now!'

Fawful gulped and slowly began to walk to the exit door. As he descended the steps and could be clearly seen, the crowd slowly hushed. Mouths dropped, and Fawful was suddenly very aware of guards going tense. He reached the bottom of the steps and stopped. Utter silence filled the air. A baby started crying, much to Fawful's irritation.

'Well...' Lady Lima said when the Bean Queen proved speechless. 'That's certainly, um...unexpected. Um...I guess we need to take action now...'

'Lady Lima, if you could just hold on a minute—'

Mario's words fell on deaf ears as the Beanish woman pointed at Fawful. 'GUARDS!' she shrieked. 'ARREST HIM!'

Fawful jumped to the side and rolled as a guard leapt at him brandishing a weapon. He automatically drew his blaster and prepared himself for a long and difficult battle as more guards ran at him.

He _knew_ coming here was a bad idea.

Dimentio

Dimentio sat idly on his throne in Castle Bleck. Doopliss and Grubba ran through the doors and closed them tightly, panting.

'Ah ha ha!' the jester laughed. 'Some trouble with my minions?'

Doopliss glared at him. 'You _shmuck!_' he spat. 'The freakin' things think we're the enemy!'

Grubba was gasping for breath. 'Haah...haah...sheesh...this bod...sure ain't...gettin' any...younger...haah...'

'So then, slick, whadya call us for?'

Dimentio grinned and ignored the "slick" remark; he supposed he'd have to get used to the two villains' mild quirks. '_Well_, I've stumbled upon a very tasty piece of information!' He clapped his hands together. 'I hope you enjoy travelling, because the Heroes have started a course to the Beanbean Kingdom!'

'An' I suppose you want us to hightail it over there an' ambush the little varmints?' Grubba huffed, regaining his breath.

'Ah, no,' Dimentio replied, wagging a finger. 'The only one going there at this point in time is our friend Doopliss.'

'What?' the Duplighost roared. 'You're sending just me? Why doesn't he go?'

'Because you're going to be much less conspicuous with your shape shifting powers. The only things in that country are the Bean species, so you'll have to be one of them. Of course, if things prove unfortunate, I'll gladly send Grubba along to assist you.'

Doopliss grunted. 'Fine, I'll go. Do you want me to find them and take them out or what?'

'Oh no, that's far too dangerous a task at this point. You see, I already know what their business is in the Beanbean Kingdom: they need to create a very powerful object to defeat me, and to do that they need other powerful objects to supply the energy. There is only one object in the Beanbean Kingdom that is suitable for such a task: the legendary Beanstar. I need you to steal it and dispose of it before the Heroes can get at it. Understand?'

Doopliss nodded. 'I gotcha.'

'And remember well: failure is not an option.' The sheeted ally nodded confidently and flipped out of the dimension using the power Dimentio had granted him. He leaned back in his throne and smiled his signature smile. 'The battle has now begun.'


	11. Chapter 11: Resisting Arrest

Chapter 11: Resisting Arrest

Doopliss

Doopliss trudged irritably along the unfamiliar field, muttering to himself.

'Stupid, crazy country...' he spat. Since he'd been here, he'd been assaulted by throngs of the Beanbean Kingdom's citizens, each one of them trying to get a good look at the strange creature. He stopped and looked up at a strange green plant, which seemed to be staring at him through beady black eyes. It had a wide, toothy grin on its face. He shook his head and moved on. 'Easy Doopliss,' he said to himself. 'Just a plant. Nothing dangerous.'

He squinted; a town! Perfect. All he had to do was go in there and ask where this stupid Beanstar thing was, then—

'Oh, whoops!' Doopliss disappeared in a puff of purple smoke and reappeared as a native Bean. He had only gotten into the messes he had gotten into because he had forgotten to blend in. Now, all he had to do was ask where the Beanstar was and then swipe it before those Heroes could take it.

'_Heroes_...' he spat. 'More like _zeroes._' What he wouldn't give to smash that pathetic plumber's face into the dirt. 'Maybe once I do my job I can pop over to wherever they are and rough them up a bit.' He snickered to himself.

'So!' he declared aloud. 'Beanbean Castle, huh?' He grinned; what a pathetically easy place to keep a powerful object. 'I'll just transform into one of the guards and take the thing, no problem.'

_Pop!_

A Swarm suddenly popped out of the ground. It was basically a grey head with a long, thin neck that descended into the earth. It had huge orange lips and bulging white eyes. Two small hairs were on it head.

'Whoa!' Doopliss glared at the thing. 'Nearly gave me a heart attack!' It stared at him with a creepy smile. Doopliss gave it a wicked grin and then proceeded to kick it in the face. It gave a squeal and went into the earth. 'Ha! That's what ya get for messing with Doopliss, punk.' He took a step forward...

And then stopped cold.

Surrounding him were many, _many _Swarms, all glaring angrily at him.

'Uh...' Doopliss said, suddenly feeling very outnumbered. 'Sorry?'

People in nearby towns could hear the screams the poor Duplighost yelled out.

Fawful

Fawful's grey sandals squeaked as he skidded across the ground, blaster in hand. Two Beanbean guards had crashed into the stairs leading into the plane, their armour clattering noisily. A few guards jumped at him only to be blasted away. Fawful ducked hastily as a guard stabbed his sword through the air and, aiming at the guard's chest, fired another blast. The crazy Bean boy had an enraged glare on his face. _Since when did "arresting" have the changing to "killing?"_ he thought furiously.

'What in the world are you DOING?' Mario screamed.

'Mario...' Lady Lima said in a hushed voice over the chaos. 'That _boy _has caused the Beanbean and Mushroom Kingdoms nothing but trouble. When we heard he was dead our security was slightly lessened. Now that he's back...' She shook her head. 'I'm afraid we can't take any chances. Fawful's a villain, and we're going to make sure he doesn't cause any more trouble.'

Fawful groaned as he fell face first onto the ground, a tremor going through his teeth and rattling his head. He couldn't rest though. Pulling himself quickly up off the hard landing area he ducked behind the plane. He panted, exhaustion already taking over. Sweat dripped from his body and a lone shudder went through him.

'I...I have...tiredness...' he sputtered.

He shook his head, trying to ease the fatigue from his bones. He pulled his deactivated Headgear from under his cloak and set it on his head. He felt the familiar hissing of wind as the dome fit perfectly on his cranium and the short suction that always accompanied it for a few moments.

He stepped out into the open, gritting his teeth. There was no way he'd allow himself to be assaulted by these two-bit soldiers.

One of them walked out and pointed his sword at him. 'By order of the Queen of the Beanbean Kingdom, you are under arrest. Any last words before we take you in?'

Fawful glared.

Then his mouth twitched.

And then he smiled. A large, toothy, evil smile. He sucked in his breath and screamed at the top of his lungs:

'I. HAVE. _**FURY!**_ Headgear, attack mode!'

His Headgear sprang to life and the Bean felt his helmet grow hot on his head before it automatically regulated itself to the proper temperature. His rockets burned to life and he shot up into the air, hovering when he was out of reach.

There was a small pause...and then the guards ran for their lives.

Fawful swooped down upon them all. 'HAHAHAHAHA!' he laughed, his high-pitched voice sending a familiar fear through the cores of all Beanbean soldiers who had ever come across the boy before. He opened fire on them all, explosions shaking the earth and tearing up the ground.

'Do you not see?' Lady Lima cried. 'He'll doom us all!'

'Well he WOULDN'T be if you had just given him a chance!' Mario growled.

'Where are the rest of your friends?' the old woman asked. Then she gasped. 'Where's the Bean Queen?'

Mario looked around; they had all taken shelter behind the plane where it was safe. 'Don't worry, they'll be fine.'

Fawful, meanwhile, was having the time of his life. This was his pastime: blowing the heck out of anybody who dared attack him. He and Cackletta had done this enough times to realize that they were infinitely more powerful than the guards, so Fawful was having no trouble. 'Where is your confidence of hugeness now, fink-rats?' he taunted.

'Right HERE!'

Fawful didn't have enough time to react as a lone person fell from the sky and sliced through his Headgear rocket. Fawful was thrown off course and landed in a heap on the ground. Picking himself up and hastily beaming the damaged helmet into his storage cube, he drew his blaster again. 'Fink-rat!' he spat. 'Be showing yourself!'

'Ahahahahaha! Turn around and you'll see that I'm right here.'

Fawful spun around. He knew that laugh. It was similar to Dimentio's, though where the jester's was filled with a cruel, deadly, sadistic evil, this one was cocky and light-hearted. A horrible, fiery rage was building up inside of him. He gritted his teeth and clenched his fists as he looked into the smirking face of Prince Peasley. 'You,' he spat.

'It's been a _long_ while Fawful, has it not?' he laughed.

'The time in which we had last had the sighting of each other is not being far enough in the past!' Fawful growled.

'Always so charming,' the prince replied sarcastically. 'I find it very interesting that you take one step into the Beanbean Kingdom and you're already causing trouble.' Fawful just glared. 'Ahahahaha! But I guess I can't expect _you_ to be so civilized. After all, you aren't nearly as versed in the social arts as...' He flicked his hand through his hair, flipping it up. Fawful covered his eyes as a great, white, sparkling light shone spontaneously from him. 'Me.' He finished.

Fawful screamed and fired his blaster, knocking Peasley right off his feet. The guards instantly jumped back into action, running at the boy. Fawful opened fire on them but there were far too many.

Mario

'I'm very sorry,' Mario said. 'But if you don't trust us, then I guess we'll just have to do things our own way.' He leaped off into the crowd, ignoring the old Bean's cry of protest. The red-clad plumber ran through the crowd and skidded to a halt near the other Heroes.

'This is _insane!_' Mimi exclaimed. 'Why are they attacking Fawful if he's with us?'

Mario shrugged. 'Sometimes people act completely out of impulse.'

Midbus cracked his knuckles. 'Lord Fawful,' he murmured. 'I must protect him.'

'Just stay here,' Kamek commanded. 'No need us risking our lives for that kid.' Midbus and Mario both glared at different degrees.

'Well we can't just sit here and do nothing!' Luigi said. 'He's a Hero of Prophecy now, and we can't leave him to die.'

Mario thought for a moment. 'I have an idea.' He gave a small laugh and grinned, which was very uncharacteristic for him in situations like this. 'We need someone to go out and really scare those guards, enough for them to forget all about Fawful.'

'Alright!' Bowser roared. 'I'll go out there and scare 'em good!'

'No Bowser, not you.' Mario stopped him.

'Wait,' Mimi said. 'Bowser's gotta be the scariest out of all of us. Why not him?' Everyone suddenly looked at her. 'Um...what?'

'Mimi,' Mario said with a smile. 'Here's what you need to do...'

Mimi

The small green girl stood up on top of Princess Peach's airplane. She cleared her throat and cupped her hands to her mouth. 'Hey!' she yelled. 'HEY!' Everyone turned and one person yelled at her to get off of there because it was too dangerous for a little girl like her. She saw, out of the corner of her eye, Fawful running away from the airport as fast as he could. She laughed to herself; these guards were easily distracted. 'Um...' She waved. 'Hi everyone.'

'Get off the plane!' someone yelled. 'You'll hurt yourself!'

'Naw, I'm fine,' Mimi answered. 'I wanna show you guys a trick.'

Someone snorted. 'We don't have time!'

'WELL THEN MAKE TIME!' Mimi snarled back, the sudden change in the girl's tone causing him to jump. 'Just...watch.' She smiled innocently.

He huffed. 'Fine. One trick.'

'Teehee!' Mimi laughed. 'Okay!' She tilted her neck sharply to one side and a large, sickening _crack!_ could be heard clearly.

Everyone's breath left them. 'Um...' the mouthy guard said. 'Are you alright?'

_Crac kcrac kcrack!_ Her neck tilted over 90 degrees and sharply jerked back a little. Her eyes widened and turned completely black in their sockets. It then spun like a gear in the other direction, getting faster, then stopped, rocking a little until her head was completely upside-down.

Everyone's eyes had widened to the size of saucers and their jaws dropped to the floor. 'HOLY—' Someone screamed, cutting off his next word.

Suddenly, an odd chime sounded for no apparent reason and six spider legs burst out of her head like a bird's beak through plastic, two of them tearing the hair that was bound in pigtails off of her head and leaving them hanging on the new legs. Her head inflated and it looked very similar to a huge, green, crumpled up paper bag. Her grin grew to a wide, wicked level. The neck attached to the huge head tore gruesomely, hanging off of it by just a thread.

A horrified hush had gone over everyone. No one moved. No one breathed. And then...

_'MIMIMIMIMIMIMIMIMIMIMIMI!'_

That horrible, evil, demonic distortion of the young girl's laugh was enough to send them running in the opposite direction before she gave chase. When she did, they went in double-time.

Fawful

Fawful was running. His legs ached, his stomach ached, his sides ached...his entire body was aching. His breath came out in short, panting gasps and sweat was cascading off of every part of him like the rushing waters of Hazy Falls. He stopped, gasping for air and cursing himself for not doing cardio exercises every day when he had been exiled. He looked out ahead of him and saw a huge expanse of land stretching out below him; he was on the edge of a cliff.

The Bean was absolutely speechless, as if all the words he had ever known had left him. He just stood there, breathing in the familiar, bean-tainted air, looking at the kingdom as he had remembered it. He saw everything around him: the proud capital, Beanbean Castle Town, the Beanbean Castle at its centre; the dense, creepy Chucklehuck Woods, where the infamous Chuckola Cola had been manufactured for thousands of years in the Château de Chucklehuck; the tiny Hoohoo Village at the base of the daunting Hoohoo Mountain; Stardust Fields, the sparkling field near the border between the Beanbean and Mushroom Kingdoms; the hot, sandy Teehee Valley and mysterious Guffawha Ruins underneath Little Fungitown, the Toads' paradise; he could even see the Yoshi Theatre, a movie theatre constructed entirely for the sole purpose of providing Yoshis with entertainment, and Woohoo University; he felt a pang of loss as he remembered when he and Cackletta had taken over the latter to awaken the Beanstar, right before...

'Right before the mustaches had the intrusion...' he muttered gloomily.

He sighed and looked to the familiar, sparkling sea. He could see Oho Oasis far out into the horizon, a small haven for those travelling overseas. Looking farther out into the north, he could see the icy shores of Joke's End. He felt another pang of loss as he recalled when he and Cackletta, then reborn as Bowletta (Cackletta's soul in Bowser's body), had taken refuge there when trying to bargain the exchange that would have made everything go according to plan: the Beanstar for Princess Peach. Unfortunately, things _didn't_ go as planned.

Suddenly, an unexpected fire rose up in him, filling him with a white hot rage. His muscles tensed with the raw anger coursing through him. Curse those brothers! If it weren't for them, none of this would be happening! He would be living his life as he should be: at the Great Cackletta's side!

Words formed on his tongue. He threw back his head and screamed it out for the world to hear. 'I HAVE FURY!' he bellowed. It echoed out across the land below, declaring his fury for all ears. Fawful hung his head and panted, the tiredness final catching up to him.

'That's nothing new,' a voice said behind him. Fawful spun around and drew his blaster, aiming it at the smirking face of his assailant. 'Now now Fawful, there's no need for any anarchy!' Prince Peasley swung his sword at the boy, who ducked under it and fired a shot. The Bean prince leapt aside and ran right at Fawful, swinging and jabbing his sword with excellent precision. A few times Fawful felt an intense pain as the blade dug into his body, but it wasn't nearly as painful as he thought it would be. 'Hmph!' the prince grunted. 'You're one tough miscreant!'

Fawful's next shot met its mark, hitting Peasley right in the chest. He hit the ground back first and somersaulted back onto his feet. A noticeable scorch mark could be seen. 'Ha!' Fawful taunted. 'Have the taking of THAT!'

Peasley snickered. 'Heh. You've always been one pain in the backside after the other haven't you? You and that witch, Cackletta.' He grinned and flipped his hair, causing a blinding light to shine around the area. 'But neither of you could stand up to me!'

'Muh-make with the up shut!' Fawful spat, growing hot. When he did not, Fawful aimed his gun again.

'HA HAH!' Peasley cried out. He swung his sword and sliced the blaster right in half, the two parts tumbling down off of the cliff. 'And here is where it finally ends, cretin! After many long years, I'll finally make right the evil deeds you and that witch committed!'

'Cuh...' Fawful sputtered. 'Cuh...CRETIN?' The boy's face turned redder than a tomato. 'HOW ARE YOU DARING TO INSULT THE GREAT LORD FAWFUL?' he screamed. 'I WILL HAVE THE DESTROYING OF YOUR FACE! _**RRRREAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUGH!**_'

Fawful ran at Peasley with enough anger pulsing through his being that it could only be understood if you were Fawful himself. Peasley strafed to the left and Fawful was sent on, arms flailing. He turned abruptly and fell on his side. Pain flared up in his cheek as he scraped it hard on the rocky ground. Pulling himself back up, he ran again at the prince, who dodged just as easily.

'Hey!'

Mario and co. ran up. Fawful didn't notice, and just kept trying (unsuccessfully) to clobber Peasley. 'Ah, Beanbean's heroes!' Peasley exclaimed. 'Hold on one moment, I just have to finish my job.' He swung around and beat the Bean boy over the head with the flat side of his sword.

'Hey!' Mimi snarled (having been done with scaring the guards). 'What do you think you're doing?'

'Oh my,' Peasley exclaimed. 'Such a beautiful girl should not be in the midst of such a crazed lunatic!' He spun around and hurled Fawful to the side.

'Yeah,' Mimi said. 'I agree, so I guess you gotta leave!'

Peasley laughed. 'I like your since of humour, little lady.'

'Grr...!' Fawful growled. 'Stupid fink-rat of silly, prissiness! You give me fury, like a rotten bologna sandwich that is having much smelliness!'

'Yours could use some work,' the prince replied.

'And...and...' Fawful seethed, wanting nothing more than to verbally unleash his rage. 'And your hair is like a doll's that was hit with the stick of ugly!'

Peasley's head whipped around. 'EXCUSE ME? I'll have you know it takes me five hours every morning to get this hair to perfection!'

'And your mother of stupidness is possessing much fat and is being ridiculously unfit to rule the kingdom which is this and it would be better if it was being ruled by something that is lower on the scale of intelligence than a baby Beanie!'

The prince suddenly went silent. Fawful saw, after a moment, his eye twitch. 'What...what did you just say?' His voice had a dangerous undertone to it. The Heroes had gone quiet.

'I...I...' Fawful was gasping after his outburst. 'I had the saying that the Bean Queen is not deserving of being a monarch in the least!'

The Bean boy realized far too late that he had touched a nerve that he should have left well enough alone. The prince's face had changed colour to a deep purple, then a bright red (which was surprising, given the green colour of his skin). '_You DARE insult the Queen?_' he roared.

Fawful gulped. 'Uh...! That is meaning that—'

'_You DARE insult my MOTHER?_' he screamed. Before Fawful could respond, Peasley ran at him at a faster speed Fawful could muster. He grabbed onto his collar and punched him in the face. Fawful collapsed on the ground, his swirled glasses deeply cracked. He was picked up again and beaten in the stomach numerous times, the wind being blown out of him each time. '_YOU. DARE. MOCK. OUR. MONARCHY?_' Peasley was in a rage Fawful had never seen him in before. He brought his fist across the young scientist's head, knocking him again to the ground. Fawful, his body aching, groaned in pain. He lifted himself up and tried to steady himself, but he suddenly was seeing triple. That was enough to see Peasley raise his sword. '_Crimes against our kingdom,_' he bellowed with fury, '_will not go unpunished!_' Fawful staggered back, but stopped as his heel felt empty space; there was nowhere to run. Peasley screamed and thrust the sword at Fawful's chest.

'FAWFUL!' Mimi screamed. Mario extended his hand in a futile gesture driven by hopelessness.

Fawful let out a strangled gasp as the blade met its mark, accompanied by the sickening squelch of metal tearing through flesh. His eyes widened and his body stiffened. Peasley, still holding the blade, was gasping, the green colour coming back into his face. Fawful slowly looked down; the prince's sword had driven right through his body. A clean stab, it was right through his heart.

_His heart..._

Fawful's head pounded with the Chaos Heart's weak beats. Blood seeped out of his wound and Peasley's eyes widened; the blood was not red, but pure black and very thick. Peasley seemed to snap out of a spell; his hand shook and he slowly let go of the hilt of his sword. His eyes remained wide. Fawful's entire body was coursing with unimaginable pain, and he could slowly feel and hear the heartbeats getting weaker and weaker.

The Chaos Heart was dying.

He felt a dark power surge through him like adrenaline, the Chaos Heart's effort to keep its host alive. Fawful knew it wouldn't help; this was too fatal.

'So...' he gasped, looking at his wound. 'This...is...the end...' He winced and shook. 'The...fury...' He paused, gasping. All of his allies' eyes were wide with shock and Mimi's were glistening with tears. 'It...is...' He wheezed. 'Gone...' He felt completely spent and weak. All of his energy was slowly leaving him. This wasn't like the quick, sudden death he had brought upon himself in his last-ditch explosion as the Dark Fawful Bug; this was slow and painful. He easily preferred the former. His arms dropped limply to his sides and he teetered on his feet. 'I...have...' He looked up and met Mimi's horrified eyes. 'Failure.'

Fawful tipped uncontrollably backwards and over the cliff. He heard Mimi scream, he heard Mario yell out his name, he heard Midbus roar out his rage.

His fall seemed to go by in slow motion. Memories of times long passed zoomed by in his brain: memories of he and Cackletta's early years together that he thought he had completely forgotten, memories of their greatest and final scheme together, memories of his exile, memories of his own various schemes. He remembered when he had taken over the Koopa Troop for a short time, when he had been so close to a victory. He remembered his desperate fight for survival alongside Kamek and many other villains. He remembered the Dark Star Incident, his greatest achievement. Memories of Dimentio passed by and he regretted dying so early; he hadn't been able to pay the jester back. Memories of Mimi followed; these came as his greatest sorrow. He didn't want to leave her...

One final memory went through his head: one of Cackletta looking over her newly found "child." She was smiling sincerely, a rarity for her. She spoke in a soft, soothing voice.

_'You're going to do great things, little one...' _she said. Fawful thought this was very unlike her, but something inside him knew this was real. _'Great, wicked, evil things. Sleep for now, because you're going to be my greatest ally soon.'_ She smiled warmly. _'Sleep...Fawful.'_

Despite the pain, the sword through his chest, the blood leaking from him into the air...Fawful felt at peace. He closed his eyes and muttered something, something he had always wanted to say to Cackletta but had always been to afraid to:

'I love you...' he whispered. 'Mother.'

He hit the ground hard.


	12. Chapter 12: Cardiac Blackout

Chapter 12: Cardiac Blackout

Mimi

'I...have...' Fawful's eyes connected with hers, and her heart broke. Tears rolled down her cheeks and she fought back a sob. 'Failure.' Fawful tipped backwards...and fell over the edge.

There was a moment of cold, horrific silence. Mimi's heart was pounding. It felt like it was being compressed, like thousands of cold, dead hands were squeezing the life out of it. She had just seen Fawful's dying moments...now he was gone. She sank to her knees and clawed at the earth beneath her. Her eyes were squinted shut, her throat was tight, and her heart was breaking over and over again. Finally, unable to hold it in any longer, all of Mimi's sorrow escaped her mouth in the form of a terrible, heart wrenching scream of sadness. She beat her fist on the ground as she cried and sobbed and screamed. There seemed to be no end to her sadness.

With that, everyone went to life. Midbus cried out and smashed his fists against the floor, creating large dents in the ground. Peach and Timpani had begun to cry as well, Blumiere moving in to comfort the latter. Peasley walked forward, shaken at what he had done. 'Mario...' he whispered. The plumber walked up, a hard, solemn look etched on his face. 'I don't know what came over me. Words cannot express my—'

_SMASH!_ was the sound that echoed through the area as Mario's fist connected hard with Peasley's face. A sickening crack resonated as the prince's nose broke. Peasley dropped to the rocky floor, supporting himself with one hand and clutching his bleeding face with the other. Mario stared down at him with a stony glare. 'Next time...' he said. His words were completely emotionless and overly controlled, a blatant attempt to keep his anger under control. 'Listen.' He turned around and walked away where the others were standing. He crossed his arms and remained there, silent, back turned.

Mimi was still sobbing. Nastasia went up to her and put a hand on her shoulder. 'Mimi...' she said, trying to calm the girl down. 'It's okay...it's okay...'

'It is NOT OKAY!' Mimi screeched. 'Fawful is dead! _DEAD!_ Don't you understand what I'm going through right now?'

The secretary tried to help. 'It's best to forget him Mimi. He'll only bring you pain—'

'SHUT UP!' the green girl cried. Her head spun around without her body, cracking as it did so, to look at Nastasia in the eyes. 'You have no idea what it feels like, Nastasia! You have no idea what it's like to have someone you love _try and kill you_, and then to have your greatest friend in the middle of all this chaos die before your eyes!' Nastasia had no response. Mimi's head turned back to its normal position and she sobbed again. Fawful was gone, and this time there was no one like Dimentio to bring him back.

He was never coming back.

Dimentio

Dimentio, the great Charming Magician, lay on his bed again. A satisfied grin was on his face and he waved his finger though the air as if conducting music. He hummed a tune to himself; it was a tune that came to mind often as he thought of what kind of music best suited him. 'Ah...' he said. 'Such an excellent melody.' He laughed. 'I shall call it...The Ultimate Show! Ah ha ha!'

He leapt onto his feet and gave a bow to an imaginary crowd. 'The thrill of the stage, of wooing hundreds of adoring fans...!' He spun in the air and snapped his fingers. 'Such little things should be enjoyed. Perhaps I shall open up a circus in my perfect world. Heh...' He chuckled. 'The Heroes of Prophecy could be the freak show! Ahahahahahaha_**haaagh!**_'

Pain blasted through him and he put a hand up to his heart. 'Wh...what the..._urk...!_' The white hot pain centred on his chest could only be likened to being impaled through the heart by a sword. 'Th...this is..._ack..._n-no...!' He sank to his knees and rolled off the bed onto the floor. 'Nnn...nuh...AUGH!' The pain piercing his chest was like nothing he had ever felt before. In his mind, horrible, high pitched screeching wailed at an unbearable volume. His brain pounded in his skull as the noise reverberated through his mind. 'Suh...si...silence!' he roared to himself. 'Cease your noise!' The screeching just got louder. Dimentio had begun to hear it _saying something_...

_**'HEEEEELP MEEEEEE!'**_

'The...Chaos...Heart...?' He couldn't believe it. The Chaos Heart was speaking to him. It screamed out the plea again, and the magician had no idea what to do nor what was happening in the first place. 'Wh...what's happening?' He groaned in pain. 'I'm...dying...?' He didn't understand! What could possibly be happening to him?

It clicked: Fawful.

'No...he's..._DEAD?_' There was no other way this could be happening. Direct damage had been done to the Chaos Heart half in Fawful's body, and Fawful had died. If he had been killed without direct damage to it, the heart half would have just left his body and entered the closest thing with dark energy...but it was dying now, and with the Chaos Heart dying, it was going to take Dimentio with it.

The dying jester gritted his teeth in agony. He needed to do something, anything, to stop this before he was to join the Bean in the Underwhere for the rest of time. He inhaled deeply and then exhaled, trying to block out the pain. There was only one thing to do. Dimentio drew upon all the energy he had in him and all the energy the Chaos Heart had to offer. All the creatures he had created in the vicinity outside of his bedroom suddenly froze, died, then dissolved to nothing as their energy was sucked from their bodies as well.

This was going to be very tiring.

Fawful

His soul's consciousness was in a whirlwind. Up and down, left and right...they didn't exist here. His mind was being barraged by visions of the worst kind: evil, deathly, horrid things that belonged nowhere in the worlds. Things screamed out in pain, cried out in a sick grief, laughed with a sadistic pleasure that even Dimentio himself would never be able to match. It seemed as if all the malevolent things in existence had been crammed into his head and was pressing on his brain (if he physically had one here). He couldn't yell or scream or cry; there was too much pain. Everywhere he was conscious of was in a kind of pain that was beyond unbearable. He had only experienced this one other time: when he had committed that suicidal explosion to try and destroy the Mario Brothers in Bowser's body. He had died that day and gone through this awful experience. Now he was dead once more, and was again on the passage to the Underwhere. As he passed through this relentless hell, he began to develop a theory on why the Shaydes were always so cheerful: perhaps their minds had been crushed by _this_. He wouldn't let that happen. Never. He fought against it with all his might. After a time (he couldn't tell if it was seconds or hours) he could feel himself almost there. Only a few more moments, and he would be completely at peace, able to rest. The Underwhere was almost there...

Everything froze and Fawful felt himself jerk to a stop, as if he had been flying through the air at quadrillions of miles an hour and a someone with a very strong grip had plucked him out of the sky, instantly bringing him to a halt. His consciousness reeled and he felt himself grow queasy. He seemed to jerk forward, towards the Underwhere, then jerk back the way he had came. It was like he was being fought over...but that was impossible...

Back and forth he was pulled, and after a time the one pulling him back gave a mighty yank and it the struggle was over.

It felt like he was an elastic band who had been stretched out in opposite directions and then one of them had just let go. He snapped back at an unbelievable speed and all the visions suddenly went in reverse. Faster and faster they went, until a blinding flash of light came over him.

He felt nothing. He saw nothing. He tasted nothing. He heard nothing. He smelled nothing. All five of his senses were completely inactive, and yet he somehow knew his soul had been reunited with his dead, pale body. He could see it: the small, weak genius, his entire body cold, skin faded to a pale white. His eyes closed shut, not a breath escaping his lips nor a movement happening anywhere in his body. His arms and legs were splayed in bizarre directions that they weren't supposed to and tear marks streaked down his cheeks. Prince Peasley's sword was still lodged right through his heart, the thick, black blood that came with hosting the Chaos Heart dried up and sticking to his clothes. His clothes themselves were torn and dirty and his swirled glasses were cracked deeply. He didn't know how he knew this, but he could just see himself.

_What an end of gloominess..._ Fawful thought. _Such a villain of greatness, reduced to a corpse..._

Suddenly a great, unexpected burst of energy went through him. It travelled through his body, charging up the cells with energy, putting life into them. He felt his half of the Chaos Heart, barely alive, almost explode with dark energy. The shock brought his real heart to life once more. It shuddered in his chest, then with a great, first pump, sent blood flowing through his veins. He could sense it moving through him, though he physically felt nothing. His body began to warm up, his pale white skin changing to a normal green. The blood reached his brain and flowed through it. For a moment, he still felt nothing.

Then, all at once, his nervous system kicked in.

His eyes snapped open as pure pain exploded in his body. Every inch of him was getting feeling and blood back, and now that his brain was functional, he could feel it. He couldn't scream; his throat was dry and he was in too much pain to move. There _was_ a silver lining though: at least it wasn't as painful as death.

After a short while the pain subsided. He was aware that his lungs were burning in his chest, screaming out to his brain to give them air. He complied, sucking in big, deep mouthfuls. It felt wonderful, to lie there and breathe again, feeling the oxygen fill his lungs, to test his neck, his back, his legs, his arms, his hands and feet and fingers and toes. He blinked like mad and worked his jaw. This was nothing like the first time, when a healthy body had already been provided for him. This time, he had to rejuvenate one that had already died.

He felt the pain in his chest and could feel thick, black blood oozing out, but for some reason he felt more alive than ever before. Somewhere, something had given him power. He could feel it reverberating through him. He grinned, leaned his head back, and cried tears of happiness. He was alive! He was actually, honestly alive! He sobbed and laughed at the same time, the salty drops falling off of his face like faucet water.

'I have life...' he breathed. 'I have life...'

He heaved himself off the floor and leaned himself against the cliff wall. He needed to take his time and conserve energy. Now...he looked around. What was he to do now?

Something caught his eye. A medium sized object, glowing in the sparkling sunlight. He frowned, confused. What in the world was this doing here? Shouldn't it be back at the...

'Hm...' Fawful mused. 'Much oddness.' He took out his storage cube and beamed the object into it. 'Fawful will learn of this later...'

He groaned in pain. His newfound strength was slowly leaving him. No wonder; he had a sword going through his body. Clicking a button on his cube, his hover platform was beamed out. He had made a few adjustments on the plane. Then he beamed out the stick he had used to support all of his machines before the cube's invention and used it to bring himself to his feet. He groaned in pain again as his chest burned in agony. Standing on the platform, he took a deep breath.

'Time for Fawful's return with triumph,' he said, the pain cutting in on any enthusiasm he might have had. 'Up.' The platform went up at a steady climb. It wasn't long before he went over the top of the cliff.

At the sound of the rockets, everyone looked at him. There was a moment of blank stares...and then everyone's jaw dropped to the floor. A few people's eyes were wider: Prince Peasley's were quite, and Kamek's were as wide as saucers. Mimi had fresh tears streaking down her cheeks and looked at him with utter disbelief.

He inched himself forward. the _clang, clang, clang_ of the wooden stick on metal abruptly changed to a _thunk, thunk, thunk_ as it connected with the rocky cliff edge. He suddenly felt very weak. The sword through his heart was acting like it really was; the pain had built to a staggering level and his muscles were tense. His face was contorted in pain and he gasped with every movement. Whatever had saved him before was losing its power.

He stopped. His body shook with the strain of keeping him up. He looked at all of them, then shuddered and collapsed to the ground.

'FAWFUL!' Mimi screamed, and ran to him. Everyone else followed. Fawful grimaced at the noise. Everyone was asking him how he felt and how he survived and nothing was being done to help him.

'SILENCE!' he screamed at the top of his lungs. Everyone shut up and backed off. He breathed hoarsely. 'Have the...helping of...me...' he said. Midbus immediately complied, scooping the small boy up in his meaty arms. He tilted his head to Peasley. 'Show...Midbus...castle...' he said, his number of words per breath getting shorter. Peasley nodded and whistled. A huge, green bean with white, feathered wings came out of the horizon. The Bean prince hopped on it.

'You!' he exclaimed, pointing to Midbus. 'Huge...pink...pig thing! Make haste to Beanbean Castle!' Fawful pointed to the hover platform and Midbus got on it. The two flew off to the capital city of the Beanbean Kingdom.

Fawful hoped he wasn't going to die _again_ before he got there.

Fawful's bloodcurdling scream echoed through the halls of the castle despite the door to the medical room being tightly closed. 'I HAVE PAAAAAIIIIINN!' he yelled.

'SHH!' one of the doctors shhed. 'You're distracting us!'

Fawful glared at him through clenched teeth. 'Easy for you to be shushing,' he growled.

'Try to block out the pain,' another doctor said. 'We need to get this thing out of your chest cavity!'

The Bean genius' clothes were all gone, leaving him in a surgical gown. They had been given to staff to have them cleaned of all blood (a tough job, given the nature of Fawful's blood at this point) and sewed back together. The doctors had been trying to remove Peasley's sword from his chest but it was proving difficult. They couldn't use anaesthetics because they were afraid they would lose him if he went into unconsciousness, so he had to be completely awake for it. Not a good thing for a ten year old boy.

He screamed again as they tried once more. 'STOP!' he screamed, crying. 'STOP!'

'Fawful!' one of the doctors growled. 'We're trying to help you!' His response was an unintelligible whimper. They spread the wound apart, making more space, and pulled. Fawful bit furiously on his cheeks and tongue, telling himself that it would be over in a matter of seconds. A cry escaped his lips soon, however.

It took a few minutes, much to Fawful's agony, but they finally got the sword removed. Fawful breathed deeply, crying as the pain flared up. 'Does anyone have anything for healing?' a doctor asked. 'Any Mushrooms?'

'I don't think so!' another answered. 'We'd have to get them from Little Fungitown!'

'That could take a while...' another said.

'BAH!' Fawful spat. 'Be getting Fawful's Spacial Matter Scrambling Device!' All he got were blank stares. '_THE CUBE IN FAWFUL'S CLOAK!_' The doctors then scrambled out of the room to get it. When they came back and gave it to him, he beamed out one of the many Ultra Shrooms he had stored and stuffed it in his mouth. It was smooth. As his massive teeth bit down on it, it popped like a balloon full of goo. A shimmering, green, semi-thick liquid poured out. Fawful was amazed at its taste; it was incredible! For the years he had lived in the Mushroom Kingdom he had mostly lived off of Beanbean dishes, every now and then eating the occasional Mushroom dish. This Ultra Shroom though...it was delicious! He swallowed the paste and instantly felt himself being healed. His wound closed, his body grew strong, and he felt more awake than he ever had in years.

'Nice!' one of the doctors exclaimed. 'You recovered 50 HP!' Fawful gave him a blank look. 'Eh...never mind.' Fawful was escorted to his castle bedroom and given his clothes back. 'Well, Mr. Fawful,' a doctor said. 'We hope we could be of service.' They turned to leave.

'Waiting!' Fawful exclaimed. When they turned to look, he thanked them for their excellent help. They smiled, somewhat surprised at his kindness, and left him alone in the room, closing the door behind them.

Fawful sighed. After getting dressed he walked out onto the balcony (he was amazed at getting such a great room), savouring the sights. The night was just beginning, the setting sun trickling over the horizon, casting a reddish glow on the sky which slowly faded to blue. Night's first stars could be seen as well as the moon. Despite being a wanted criminal for most of his life, he loved the Beanbean Kingdom more than anything in the world. This would always be his home.

A knock sounded at his door. 'It is being unlocked!' he called without turning to look. He heard the sound of it opening and closing, then footsteps approaching him.

'Drinking in the sight?' It was Prince Peasley. His voice was a little bit nasally due to his broken nose, which had been bandaged up. It seemed they didn't have many Mushrooms available. Fawful nodded. 'Yes...the Beanbean Kingdom is a glorious place, isn't it?'

The child nodded again. 'It has been a time of much longness since Fawful has seen a Beanbean sunset...' He sighed, wiping a tear from his eye. 'I have shed many tears of sadness throughout these years...'

Peasley's expression changed to something resembling surprise. It was as if something that had been right in front of him had been hidden from view until now. 'Fawful...I think I've been misjudging you all these years.' He chuckled. 'You feel emotions other than fury after all.'

Fawful chuckled too. 'Fawful has been thinking very hard about the side of good. Travelling with Mario has opened up many things that I had the disregarding.'

Peasley gave him a puzzled look. 'Like what?'

'Love...' he muttered. 'The reason the mustaches have caused Fawful such pain...' He looked up into the sky; the beautiful sight was tarnished by the swirling Void. 'And the reason for the doomsday of Dimentio.'

'There's something I don't understand...' Peasley said after a pause. 'Why do you do it?'

Fawful was confused. 'Why am I doing what?'

'All this...' Peasley shrugged. 'Evil. Chaos. Killing. All the anarchy that you and Cackletta have caused.'

'Oh.' Fawful chuckled. 'Welling, that is a question of ease to answer. The ones who are Cackletta and I had all the plans of evil because...' He paused, thinking. 'Um...because...' His heart dropped as he realized something he had never once thought of before: he had no idea why he did such evil. 'Fawful is not knowing why.'

Peasley was dumbfounded. 'You don't know WHY you tried to take over the Beanbean and Mushroom Kingdoms?'

Fawful sighed. 'No. Fawful supposes he simply was taught evilness from birth, having no idea why...'

'Well, perhaps not from birth. Cackletta may have found you a few years after you were born, making you older than you think you are.' He chuckled. 'You didn't seem to grow much.' Fawful just scowled.

The wind blew. Their clothes ruffled, along with their hair (Peasley's long blonde hair was more dramatic than Fawful's small black tuft). 'Well...I suppose I'll be leaving.' He turned and walked away. 'Oh, Fawful, I thought I should tell you. You're going to be getting a few more guests tonight. Only one can visit you at a time, as per regulations. Don't want to overwhelm someone who just had a sword shoved through their heart.' He chuckled, apologizing. As he walked away, Fawful could hear his words: '...still can't believe he _survived_...' Fawful huffed; the prince knew almost nothing of his ordeals.

Another knock at the door. Fawful told whoever it was to come in. He heard footsteps approaching him. 'Hey kid.' It was Kamek.

Fawful had half a mind to tell him to leave, but he figured if he could stand Prince Peasley he could stand Kamek. 'What are you wanting of me?' He grimaced; a dull pain was growing in his heart.

Kamek snorted and stood beside him. 'Nice way to greet me.' When Fawful didn't respond, he spoke. 'You know...you really surprised all of us. Scared us too.' He smiled as if he were about to laugh. 'Having someone survive something like that sends chills down your spine. Especially when you're enemies.'

'But we are not being enemies,' Fawful said questioningly.

'Not _now_,' Kamek said. 'But we were. Thinking about who I was trying to get rid of now is really...well, disturbing.'

Fawful's heart panged again and he gave an almost inaudible squeak of pain. Kamek didn't hear it. 'Fawful is glad you are finally realizing who is being superior!' he taunted. The Bean boy put on a grin, but his face was obviously contorted in pain.

'Don't get a big head,' Kamek spat. 'I'm still the better of us and you know it.' Fawful didn't respond; his teeth were bared in a snarl and his fingers were twitching. One hand was over his heart like a claw. 'Uh...Fawful?' Kamek eyed him. 'You okay?'

'F-Fawful is being fuh...fine...' he said. 'He is just having some...some _heart_ pain!' He groaned.

'Fawful, don't try to act high and mighty. This could be serious.' Kamek looked concerned.

'HAH!' Fawful's short chortle came out cracked. 'Don't be worrying, Fawful is fuh...fuh..._gak!_'

A shock travelled through his veins from his heart. His eyes widened and he gave a short spasm before collapsing to the floor. 'Fawful!' the Magikoopa exclaimed. He dropped to his knees, drawing his wand. 'Where's the pain?'

'Huh...huh..._heart_...' he moaned. 'Aaaaa_aaaaaaugh!_' He thought his teeth were going to break themselves apart he was clenching them so hard.

'Don't worry, I know how to fix heart pain.' Kamek pointed the wand at the Bean's chest. '_Vigoratus viscus!_' he commanded. His wand shone with a white light and fired a concentrated beam into Fawful's chest. Kamek grunted through the effort before the beam turned completely black and exploded in his face. He cried out and fell onto his back. 'What the heck? That's...that can't be!'

Fawful hastily unbuttoned his cloak and shirt, trying to see what in the world was happening to him. What he saw horrified him.

Kamek's eyes widened. 'What...the...Underwhere...?'

Fawful was at a loss for words. The half-heart symbol on his chest was pumping erratically, perfectly in sync with his real organ. From the heart, thick black veins extended for about three inches each, each of them perfectly aligned with Fawful's real ones connected to his real heart. As the Chaos Heart pumped, a lighter grey substance (presumably some sort of darkness substitute for blood) pumped through the veins. The substance couldn't be seen where the veins couldn't. The pain in Fawful's chest grew to a peak and Fawful couldn't help but cry out. Kamek crawled over. 'Fawful, calm down!' He put a hand on the Bean's shoulder.

The touch suddenly felt like ice to Fawful's skin. He twisted on the ground and stuck his hand in Kamek's face. _'BE KEEPING YOUR HANDS OFF!'_ he screamed. His voice reverberated through the air as if possessed. Without even trying to do so, a blast of dark energy went up Fawful's arm and out his palm, hitting Kamek in the head and blowing him clean off of the balcony. He screamed as he fell the one story and landed in the gardens' rose bushes.

'_Fawful!_' The voice was Mimi's. The door opened without Fawful needing to permit her to enter and she ran to the balcony. Her eyes widened and she screamed. Through the glare of light off of Fawful's glasses (the light came from inside the room) she could see Fawful's irises glowing red. She gulped and kneeled at his side, her hand on his shoulder. 'Fawful, what happened to you?' The touch felt warm on his tortured body. He could only groan. 'I'll go and get Mario!'

Fawful's eyes widened and he tightly grasped her arm. 'No!' he cried. She looked back at him, frozen pain and fear. 'No...be staying with Fawful...here...'

A moment passed and Mimi laid down at his side. She held his hands in hers. 'Okay...' she said, worry in her voice.

And so they laid there for a time. Kamek made his way up to the balcony and took the two green beings as a sign to leave, which he did. He seemed to trust Fawful's judgement, because nobody else came running into the room after that. The pain slowly subsided. His hearts began to beat in regular intervals. His breathing slowed. He closed his eyes. Moving a hand over his heart, he traced the Chaos Heart half with his finger, then ran it along the veins. 'Such misfortune...' he whispered.

Mimi gave a "mhm" noise of agreement. 'You've gone through a lot...you nearly died again, and now this...'

'Mimi, Fawful _did_ have the dying.'

Her head shot up. 'What? What did you say?'

'Fawful did have the dying, but he had the revival before his passage to the Where of Under was complete.'

'But...how?'

'I am not knowing.' A moment of silence and confusion passed. 'Mimi...' Fawful sat up. 'I have gratefulness for you.'

Mimi smiled. 'Are you okay?' Fawful nodded and stood up. Mimi followed suit, waited a moment, then cried and hugged him tightly, making Fawful gasp with surprise. 'Oh Fawful I thought I'd lost you!' she sobbed. 'I thought you were gone forever!'

'Muh...Mimi...' Fawful couldn't speak. His heart was pounding in his chest very quickly (in the NON lethal way this time) and shivers racked his body. The green girl buried her face in his arms. Fawful wrapped his arms around her waist and they just stayed there like that for a time. When Mimi stopped crying, she moved away.

'Um...' She was blushing. 'Th-thanks for that...' A small smile was on her lips.

Fawful frowned. 'Were you not having the love for Dimentio?' he asked. She didn't appear to hear him and instead picked up his shirt and cloak, handing them to him. He knew she was just pretending though; the uncomfortable look on her face told him that much.

When Fawful was fully dressed Mimi walked to the door. 'Um...you should get some sleep. You're probably very tired.' Fawful gave an absentminded nod. 'Do you want me to tell anyone else about this?' Fawful shook his head; he would rather keep this to himself (and Mimi and Kamek of course). Mimi forced a smile. 'Good night...Fawfie.' The way she said it made Fawful grow all the more hot. She closed the door and Fawful could have sworn he heard her give a blissful sigh.


	13. Chapter 13: Succubus

Chapter 13: Succubus

Fawful

Morning came. Fawful and the others were standing outside the Beanstar Chamber. The old, wrinkled form of Lady Lima walked up to them as well as the huge, rotund one of the Bean Queen.

'Are you sure you cannot stay a while?' the Bean Queen asked.

Mario shook his head. 'No, we can't waste any time. The Void grows every single day and we need a Purity Heart before it destroys the Mushroom World.'

'Tsk tsk,' Prince Peasley tsked. 'Such a shame. We were very ready to give hospitality this time...'

Luigi smiled. 'You've already given us a lot of food and sleep. We're very grateful.' He pointed to the person beside him. 'Especially O'Chunks.'

''Ey!' the Scottish warrior bellowed. 'I only ate five helpings o' food!'

'And slept most of the night,' Nastasia muttered, pushing up her cat eye glasses. 'You shouldn't be wasting time!' O'Chunks winced. Despite having such a tough appearance, what with the armour, the bandages on his arms, his huge muscles, and his rough face, Fawful thought he was a bit of a wimp to have the woman boss him around. Then again, she _was_ quite scary.

'Well, I suppose it cannot be helped,' the Bean Queen said. Her mouth was curved in her normal large, toothy grin. It reminded Fawful of his own. 'You need the Beanstar, correct? Go right ahead. We'll turn off the security system.'

Mario and Luigi both laughed. 'Finally figured out a better security system than having the plumbing broken?' Luigi joked.

Lady Lima coughed and turned red. 'Ah, yes, that. We, er, had a lot of complaints about that particular method.'

'Anyway, I guess it's time to get what we came here for,' Mario declared. They opened the door.

The room was as it had been before. The floor was still checkered with two different shades of green. The walls were still a blue colour. The chandelier still hung in the middle of the ceiling and there were still the three giant suits of armour at the end. The Beanstar floated in the middle over a neat pile of light green leaves. The red energy barrier was just disappearing.

'Well that required a lot less word than last time,' the green brother noted.

Mario walked up to it. 'Here it is...' he said. 'The first item needed to create the Purity Heart, sleeping here, just waiting to be used.' He smiled. Fawful was frowning. He remembered after his revival, he had seen something near him, so he had taken it. What he had found contradicted what he saw right before his eyes. If what he found was authentic, then the Beanstar shouldn't be where it was. He walked around it, giving it a long, hard look, but it looked as real as it could. Mario grabbed it and hoisted it above his head. 'We've got the Beanstar!' he declared triumphantly!

'EUGH! LET GO OF ME!'

Everyone's jaws dropped. 'Wh...WHAT THE UNDERWHERE?' Peasley exclaimed.

'The...the Beanstar just spoke!' Luigi cried.

The Beanstar was also glaring at them all furiously. 'Gah, I can't believe I was THIS desperate! Taking this stupid things shape and letting you TOUCH ME!' It looked absolutely disgusted.

'Who...who the heck are you?' Mario demanded.

The Beanstar grinned wickedly, making everyone in the room shift nervously; no one had ever seen it act this way. 'Looks like I pulled a fast one on ya...Mario ol' chum.' There was a poof of purple smoke and Fawful saw the back of a person people often talked about in Mario's exploits: a white sheeted Duplighost with a party hat.

Doopliss.

'YOU!' The red plumber yelled.

'Yeap, it's me alright!' Doopliss grinned. 'Man, acting is so AWFUL! Especially when I had to deal with Madame Flurrie all the time. God she was annoying, always talking about the thrill of the stage and all that.' He gave a huff. 'But not me. I craved the thrill I got when I turned someone into a pig. That evil thrill. That _great_ thrill!' He cackled. 'Now, NOW I've got that thrill again! And I'm gonna fuel that thrill into beating you, finally, and giving your body to Dimentio as a trophy!' He raised his arms. 'LET'S SEE YOU BEAT ME THIS TIME, SLICK!'

Fawful took his new blaster, pressed a button to reveal the stun gun on the inside of the barrel, and stuck it in Doopliss' back.

_BZZZZZZT!_

The shock that echoed through the room had everyone cringing. Doopliss spasmed after a moment of voltage flowing through him and was suddenly locked in the pained, surprised expression. He teetered as if he were a statue and fell to the floor with a thud.

Fawful grinned and spun the gun on his finger. 'Such a climax that is having the word anti on the beginning of it.' He flipped the barrel back to its regular spot and blew on the tip of the gun.

'Anticlimactic indeed,' the Bean Queen agreed.

'Wait...' Luigi realized. 'If the Beanstar isn't here, then where is it?'

Fawful's grin widened. 'Peasley!' Peasley turned to look at him. 'I am needing to be thanking you!' The Bean boy leaned on the wall. 'When Fawful had the plummeting to his death, and then the revival of luckiness, he had the seeing of an object.' He took out his cube and began to throw it up in the air, catching it as it came down. 'This object...it will be solving all of our problems!' He pressed a button a few times and pointed the cube up in the air. A flash of light shone for a moment and then out came...the Beanstar.

'WHOA!' Everyone jumped.

'So you see, the day has been saved...by me, the Great Fawful!'

Kamek crossed his arms. 'I'd say you got lucky.' Fawful stuck his tongue out at him.

'Well...now that we've got that resolved...' Peasley said. 'I'd say it's time for your hasty ride home!' He turned around and pointed to nothing in particular. 'To the Beanbean Airport!'

'Oh...my...GRAMBI!'

Princess Peach was staring wide-eyed and open-mouthed at a sleek, luxurious jet parked on the airport runway. Peasley laughed. 'Ahahahaha! You like my plane, do you?'

'It's...it's...AMAZING!' She was in awe. Everyone else was too, though the princess was more so. 'It must have cost a fortune!'

Peasley grinned. 'Only the best money can buy for our land.'

'Peasley, it's rude to gloat,' the Bean Queen scolded. Peasley frowned.

Fawful was also very impressed by it. It was green, which was Peasley's signature colour much like the Peach's was pink. Where Peach's was big and round, this one was thinner and seemed to be built less for comfort and smooth travel and more for speed and control. The wings were curved at excellent angles and the body of the plane itself was smooth and built for good aerodynamics. The jet turbines on the wings as well as on the back of the plane were black and freshly cleaned. The tail wing above the back turbine was also made for efficiency. 'This plane has much impressiveness!' he admitted. 'Perhaps Fawful could be looking at the blueprints at a date which is later than today's date?'

Peasley shook his head. 'I'm afraid I can't. The blueprints aren't to be looked at anymore.' Fawful huffed his disappointment. 'In any case, this thing travels at really high speeds. Much higher than that plane you flew here in.'

Peach was still reeling at the price possibilities. 'This...how much did this cost anyway?'

'This? Hm...I'd say about 5,000,000 coins.'

Peach's jaw dropped. 'That's unbelievable!' A thought occurred to her. 'Wait, is that in Mushroom Coins or Beanbean Coins?'

'Oh, that's in Beanbean currency.' He took out a calculator. 'Let me see...at today's exchange rate, I'd say that 5,000,000 Beanbean Coins levels out to about...' He pressed a lot of buttons and did many calculations. 'Ah!' He smiled.

'Well? How much was it?'

'505,050,505,050,500,000,000,000,000,000,000 Mushroom Coins!'

Peach fainted.

Doopliss

The white-sheeted Duplighost was leaning on the grey, depressing walls of his prison cell all alone. He got up, paced the room for a while, then sat down again in a huff.

'Freaking zeroes...zapping me from behind like that...' He remembered the one who did it too. That smug, toothy grin, the swirled glasses and green skin. The red cloak...gah! 'He'll never get away with this...ever! I swear it!'

'To who?'

Doopliss' head snapped around to look at the person speaking to him outside the cell doors. He couldn't see her very well in the darkness but he could see the silhouette of a woman with long hair done up in pigtails. She leaned on the wall opposite the bars. 'What's it to you?' Doopliss snapped. He had had it! First he had to go through that awful ordeal of being the Beanstar, then he got shocked by some kid, then he got thrown in jail. _Now_ he was being taunted by some girl.

'Oh, I don't know,' she replied mockingly. 'I just thought it would be nice to liven up your day, what with being in jail and all.'

'Shut up,' Doopliss grumbled.

He saw her stretch. 'Ah, I see. Not happy in prison?'

'I said SHUT UP! Stupid punk!' He felt angrier at this woman than he had at anyone else, which surprised him.

'You're a Duplighost right? Why don't you just turn into a gas and float out of here?'

He paused before answering. 'My powers aren't working. Must've been something in that kid's zapper.'

He heard her snicker. 'Pathetic, that's what you are. Pathetic!'

'Hey, listen lady, I've got powerful connections so if you don't shut your face right now I'll see to it that you end up a smear on this dungeon's wall!'

'Hah! _Really_ now? I'm impressed. I suppose your connections are powerful enough to make up for you?' Doopliss was incredibly close to foaming at the mouth at this point. He got up and ran at the bars, smashing against them and causing a horrible rattling sound. He screamed a string of vulgar and sexist swear words at her. Normal words seemed to have failed him. The girl raised her eyebrows in mock surprise. 'My my, the anger on you. Haha.' She snickered. 'It's a good thing I paralyzed the guard or we'd both be in trouble right now.'

'YOU NO GOOD LOUSY FREAKING—wait, what?' All the anger melted away as hope stirred inside of him.

Although he couldn't see well, Doopliss got the impression that she was smiling. She jingled a ring of keys on her index finger. 'Yes, I've been looking out for you this whole time and you call me...those things? Why should I let you out?'

Doopliss lost it again. 'LET ME OUT OF HERE!' he screamed.

The woman drew close to the bars. Very close. They locked eyes, and Doopliss saw that hers were a ruby red. She smiled sweetly. 'Come now...why can we just get along? I don't mean you any harm little Duplighost. None at all.' Her eyes seemed to glow with a hidden magic. Instantly all the anger, hatred and disgust melted away. His heart thumped violently in his chest and he grew very hot. The woman before him suddenly seemed too beautiful and elegant for words. When he tried to speak, he found that he couldn't. 'There now,' she cooed. His heart thumped harder; her voice was so sweet. 'Now, are we willing to cooperate?' All he could do was nod. 'That's better.' She unlocked the door and it creaked open. 'Go on then.' She began to walk away.

'W-wait!' Doopliss yelled. She turned. 'Wh-who are you?'

She smiled. 'I'll leave that to myself, thank you.'

'Wh-why did you rescue me? Why are you here? What do you want?'

'Well!' She leaned on the wall counting off her fingers. 'I rescued you because you were pitiful. I'm here by chance, really. And what I want...' She paused, wondering whether or not she could trust this Duplighost. 'What I want is to meet the person behind the Void.'

'The...' It took Doopliss several moments to realize what she had said. 'You want to meet Dimentio? Why?'

'"Dimentio?"' She grinned and giggled. 'What a...regal sounding name, almost. Is he the one who summoned it?'

'Uh...yeah, he is. I was supposed to...you know, ambush the Heroes and all...'

'The Heroes foretold in the book...how interesting...' It didn't even occur to Doopliss that her knowing of the Dark Prognosticus was suspicious. She leaned in again and he found himself once again smitten. '_Hon_...' She smiled. 'Could you pretty please take me to this...Dimentio?'

'Uh...' He snapped himself out of his trance. 'Yeah, of course!' He extended his hand. She grabbed onto it (making Doopliss feel faint) and they both flipped out of the dimension.

Dimentio

Dimentio leaned his head back on his throne. Even now, a significant amount of time after what he had done, he _still_ felt exhausted. That boy...what an idiot, allowing himself to be killed! For allowing the Chaos Heart to be damaged! He sighed and waved his hand; anger was not the option.

He laid his head back. What he had done had been a very tiring ordeal, to say the least. When he had felt the Chaos Heart dying, he knew he needed to take action. First, after gathering all the energy he needed, he plucked Fawful's soul from the grip of death before he made the full passage to the Underwhere. It was fortunate he made it in time; if Fawful had made the full passage, everything would have been lost. Dimentio had been extremely close to losing his only chance. After rejoining Fawful's soul with his body, he sent a charge of dark energy into the Chaos Heart, filling it with life. This shock to the body was enough to get the Bean's systems up and running.

Looking back, he really had worked a miracle.

'Ah ha ha...perhaps I really am a God...' He giggled at the thought. 'And I will soon have a world in my image to match my power.' The Void suddenly seemed to be expanding at a snail's pace to him.

Suddenly, a fierce banging on the throne room doors made his mind chance to alertness. He could hear Grubba and Doopliss yelling through the doors. 'Dimentio, you gotta open the door!' the Duplighost cried.

'And why must I do that?' Dimentio called to them.

'Doopliss brought one fine lady to join us and help wit yer goal!' Grubba yelled.

Dimentio grinned; a newcomer? He hadn't been expecting that. 'Well then, come in! The more the merrier!'

The doors opened and three people ran in, the first two of which were the Duplighost and the Clubba (oddly enough, Dimentio never had seen him with a club before). In the middle, looking half amused at the minions' antics and half amazed by the castle, was a girl.

She was small and lean, a tad taller than Mimi and Rosabella. Her skin was a nice shade of white darker than the jester's own and her long hair, which was done up in pigtails, was a fiery red. Her eyes were also red and glittered in her sockets like multifaceted rubies. Her clothes slightly repulsed him. She wasn't wearing _much_; the upper half of her upper body was covered by black clothing. She also wore small shorts of the same design. Short red ribbons streamed down from her clothes. She had black leggings on, which were decorated with while lace. What made up for the dreadfully revealing clothes was the girl's face; it had a fierce and knowledgeable gaze to it. Her mouth was curved in a small, impressed smile and her glittering eyes bore into the ones on his mask. He could sense her studying him, not only for his physical appearance and clothes, but for his mind as well. He could feel her trying to guess what he was thinking. Hopefully, she wouldn't know until he let her. He smiled the same small, impressed smile as her, though it came out much more wickedly due to his mask being the thing that made it.

'Greetings, girl,' he said. Her smile wavered for a moment but soon replaced itself. 'I welcome you to my castle.' He leaned back. 'I hear from my minions that you would like to join?' Looking at the two of them, they really seemed to be beside themselves. Both were fidgeting uncomfortably as if there was something they really wanted to do for this girl, anything to impress her. He sighed inwardly; they were such fools.

She smiled, placing a finger under her bottom lip. 'And _I_ hear that you're the one who's causing all of the chaos in the worlds.'

Dimentio chuckled silently; her voice was as sharp as her gaze. He also detected some mocking. Ah well, some things couldn't be helped. 'That I am. The keeper of this castle and the destroyer of all worlds!'

It looked to Dimentio that she was going to make some sort of comment on his jester attire but held her tongue at the last moment. Good. She must know that he wasn't to be trifled with. 'Yes. I would like to join you.'

'Well, what can you offer me? Do you have any special powers?'

She nodded and grinned, showing abnormally sharp teeth. They weren't fangs, per se, but a few on each side were sharper than a normal humans. 'I'm very venomous you know. My venom can stop even a gigantic monster's body in a matter of seconds. Complete and total paralysis.'

'Ah.' The jester grinned. 'Sounds interesting...but not completely useful. Do you have any other abilities?'

'Um...' She seemed nervous. 'N-no. Nothing else.'

'That's _all_ you have? Venom? Hah. I'm afraid you won't be of use to me.' He snapped his fingers. 'Grubba. Doopliss. Please show this woman to the door.'

'Wh-WHAT?' She was outraged. 'This is unbelievable! You expect me to just up and leave?'

'No, I expect you to be dragged away kicking and screaming.' He snapped his fingers again, which caused the two minions to clutch her arms tightly out of fear. 'Ciao.'

'No, stop! I can't leave now! I need...' She gritted her teeth. 'Or...I suppose the Heroes of the Light Prognosticus could use my help.'

Dimentio's eyes widened in shock. 'What did you just say?'

She grinned. 'That's right. I know who you are...Keeper of the Dark Prognosticus!'

Dimentio paused, thinking. This girl would probably be useful to the Heroes...and considering she knew about the Prognosticuses, he really should keep an eye on her, if anything. He snapped his fingers again. 'Unhand her and leave the room. Now.' They did as bidden. The doors closed tightly.

It was Dimentio's turn to study her this time. He stared her down, trying to see into her mind. Unsuccessfully. 'Who exactly are you, that you would know of those books?'

She smiled, putting her finger under her lip again. 'Got you there didn't I?'

'Answer the question, girl.'

She frowned. 'I've had past experiences with the Dark Prognosticus as it travelled through the dimensions trying to find its master.'

Dimentio kept smiling as he had all this time. The Dark Prognosticus had certainly seen a lot. The Tribe of Darkness had had it stolen from them in its early years. As it travelled the dimensions, Dimentio had searched for it. Thousands of years of searching...and then he found it and brought it back. 'Interesting...perhaps you could be of use to me after all...'

'How so?'

'I sense many, many years of cunning and finely tuned intelligence in you...and you might have what it takes to handle a boost from the Chaos Heart.' This seemed to delight her.

'So, I can join your side then?' Dimentio nodded. 'Excellent.' She laughed; it made him think suddenly of an older Mimi. 'I have a condition, however.'

Dimentio's smile twitched; the nerve of this girl! 'A condition?'

'Yes.' She smiled. 'Remove your mask. I want to see who I'm working for.'

It took the magician several moments to come to a decision. In the end, he stood up, brushed himself off, and removed the mask, revealing his dark blue face. This seemed to surprise the girl a fair amount; her mouth opened slightly and her hand covered it. Her eyes widened a little bit. 'My oh _my_...' she breathed. 'How...striking.' She smiled, and this time Dimentio could tell she was trying to flirt with her looks. He could see her eyes glowing mysteriously. 'You're quite the specimen, aren't you?' She leaned forward. 'Perhaps you and I could be a little bit _more_ than minion and master, hm?' She smirked suggestively.

Dimentio's smile never wavered when he answered. 'No.'

The girl just about collapsed. 'Wh-what?' Her attempt to exclaim the word to herself was a failure. 'You...no way...' She cleared her throat and donned the look again. 'But, uh...wouldn't it be _special_...to have a stronger bond between us?'

'Absolutely not. Out of the question.'

She looked ready to tear off his face. 'You...who the heck are you?'

'I don't see why you're so...oh.' He grinned widely. 'Oh, I see what this is now. You have _that_ power.' She glared at him. 'The power to make any man infatuated with you. Interesting, that you would keep it from me. Ahahahaha!' He laughed. It multiplied as he saw a chill go down the girl's spine. 'That would explain my minions antics. I believe it would behove you to cease such attempts at my heart...for, you see, I haven't one.' The look of confusion on her face made him laugh again. 'But enough of this nonsense! You're more than qualified.'

She smiled again. 'I'm glad you see it my way.' She shifted her balance to her other foot. 'That guy under the sheet told me your name earlier, but I think I would like to hear it from you.'

The jester smiled and nodded. 'You're in the presence of a master magician, girl.' He rose in the air, his love for theatrics coming out again. 'For I...I am the Master of Dimensions...' He spun backwards in midair. 'The Pleaser of Crowds...' He spun around and landed hard, feet first, on the ground. 'I am Dimentio!' He bowed, arms spread apart. He tilted his head up to look at her. 'The Charming Magician.' He stood up. 'And on top of that, I am also the Destroyer of all Worlds.' He turned away and began to talk to himself. 'All worlds will be torn apart by the Void, and when that happens, I will create a new world in my image! A perfect world, without strife or war, without hate, and...without love.' He threw back his head. 'AHAHAHAHAHAHA!' he cackled. After he was finished, he spun around dramatically to face her. 'And, of course, as my minion you will control your own kingdom.' He could tell by her excited grin that this was a good thing for her. 'And now that you know my name...I must know yours.'

'My name...' She smiled and bowed courteously. 'My name, master magician...is Esmine.'


	14. Chapter 14: Loyalties

Chapter 14: Loyalties

Esmine

Esmine slammed the door to her room shut and fought back a yell. Who did that jester think he was, fighting against her power? No one, not _one_ person, was immune! It made her so...so...angry!

She paused in her anger.

And yet, it was kind of...mysterious too. It only added to that magical vibe he seemed to emit. She smiled as her heart fluttered; she was really taking a liking to him already. She had never once met anybody like him. She thought back to when she walked in the door and saw him sitting there on his throne, that eerie, ever-present smile on his face. His attire surprised her. She thought he would be one to dress like a king, and he even seemed to give off that kind of lordly aura, but there he was, dressed up like a measly court jester. And that mask, the mask that mimicked his facial movements when he wore it...it sent shivers down her spine.

She loved it.

His face was also much different than she had expected. For one thing, it was dark blue, which was an extreme oddity. Also, it was just really handsome..._perfect_. Judging by his attire, she thought he'd look more goofy, but she had been surprised once again. She knew she was going to have to tread carefully in this castle. He was dangerous, she could feel it. Dangerous and deadly. It reminded her of another person from her past...

_'Esmine! Please help me! PLEASE!'_

She shook her head. That person was long dead now. And so was its victim...

She needed a distraction. She flipped out of the dimension, eager to do some shopping.

A while later, she flipped back into her room, emptied the closet and drawers, and put all of her clothes where they belonged. Judging by the amount of clothes in the room originally, she imagined the owner and herself both had a love for fashion...though their styles were completely different. She opened the door and unceremoniously hurled all of the clothes that weren't hers out into the hallway. Dimentio could deal with them.

As she was emptying the drawers, her hand felt something hard: a book. She picked it up. It was very pink and well decorated, the word "Diary" written on the front. She smiled; perhaps she could learn this person's secrets. Opening it to a random page, she began to read.

_Dear Diary,_

_It's my first day in my new home. It's not anything like I would have expected, the castle's all black and depressing. Even the torches are black! It's really hard to see and there are a lot of weird things in here. The Count says they're there to guard the place, but I don't know what could want to attack this place. It's in another dimension too, so I also don't know who could actually come here in the first place. Oh, I guess I should tell you about the Count, huh? He's a really great guy! He took me from that awful world I lived in. That place was so bad! But you know that, right? Anyway, he's really nice and handsome and proud, and he narrates himself. It's really funny. "Stop staring at Count Bleck, demanded Count Bleck!" Tee hee! Oh, my heart just flutters, thinking about him. He told me we were fated to meet, you know. There's two other people here too. There's a woman named Nastasia, but I just call her Nassy. She's some sort of secretary to the Count, I guess. She seems to really like him, so I wonder what he did for her. Did he save her from something bad too? I asked her, but she didn't tell me anything. She just said "You should really learn to mind you business, K?" I know we'll be best friends though! The second person is this huge meathead named O'Chunks. Yeah, that's actually his name! Like, holy. Who'd name their kid O'Chunks? He's big and muscular, but that's all he is. He's really, really stupid. And so, so gross! He farts all the time. Ew! Apparently, they were fated to meet the Count too. He's always carrying around this book. He calls it the "Dark Prognoses" or something. I don't like it._

Esmine frowned. The Dark Prognosticus had been here before, under the ownership of someone named Count Bleck. That was awfully familiar...

_He says that book has the future written in it. He says that he's going to destroy all worlds and make a perfect new one in their place. I can't wait! To be honest Diary (and you CAN'T tell anyone this!)...my perfect world is actually a gem-filled pool with hunky lifeguards. I know, wouldn't that be awesome? Anyway, I'd better go. It's late...I think. It's hard to tell here. Oh well. Good night!_

_Yours Truly, Mimi _

Okay, that was definitely familiar. A Dark One, destined to destroy all worlds, and four allies to help him. That was definitely foretold in the books. However...only three were mentioned at this point, so she wondered who the last one was. Flipping a little bit later on, she read another entry.

_Dear Diary,_

_The Count says someone's been bothering him lately. Some wacko trying to join us. He says that the Prognoses doesn't hint at someone like him, so he turned him away. Twice. Jeez, can't the loser take a hint? We don't want him! Still...I wonder who he is. The Count says that he has a bad feeling about him, so it's probably good he isn't here, but still! I wonder if he's some really hot guy and the Count is just jealous...nah, that can't be right. No one can measure up to him! I don't really have much more to say, so I'm leaving for now. Bye!_

_Yours truly, Mimi. _

Esmine was wondering just as much as this "Mimi" was. Who was the fourth ally? It couldn't be the person she had been writing about if he had been turned away. She flipped another page.

_Dear Diary,_

_You are NEVER going to believe this, but that loser joined us today! Yeah, unbelievable! And he isn't even a really hot guy either! I asked the Count why he let him join and he told me the Prognoses had a very detailed description of this guy that he hadn't read before, so he decided that he was important. I wonder why this guy got a detailed description when I was just given a vague clue? The guy's kinda creepy. He floats around everywhere laughing at us and making jokes about our "incompetence." The nerve of that guy! He dresses like a total freak too. He looks like a goofy clown. He says jesters are completely different than clowns, but I know he's just covering for himself. And you know what? I think he likes me. It's really creepy. Well...I guess he's not THAT bad. A lot better than O'Chunks at least. He's funny too, sometimes, and really gives O'Chunks a hard time. You should hear the idiot when he doesn't understand something. It's like something freezes in his brain! The clown's name is Dimentio. I bet we'll be friends as long as he stops making fun of me._

Esmine shut the diary. HE was the ally? HE had been a minion? That was too hard to believe. She put the book back in the drawer for later use. She could probably learn a lot of stuff about her new master from it.

'Who are you Dimentio...?' she whispered to herself. 'What secrets are you hiding...?' As she settled in, she could hear the sound of burning clothes in the hallway and knew the magician had discovered their presence.

Fawful

The jet landed in the runway and they all got off. Fawful was very impressed by Peasley's plane; it travelled very smoothly for something going so fast. Trying to shake the jet lag off of them, they quickly travelled to Toad Town.

'Well, we've got the Beanstar,' Luigi declared. 'What now?'

'We go see Merlon, obviously,' Mario replied. They walked up to the mage's house and Mario put up his hand.

'If he says he's out this time,' Mimi muttered, 'I'm going to eat his face!' Fawful shuddered; she wasn't joking. Mario knocked.

'Who knocks?' came Merlon's voice.

'It's me, Mario,' the red brother answered.

'Ah. Come in.' Mario opened the door. It was just as it had been before. Merlon was sitting on his chair in front of his crystal ball, gazing into its depths. He looked up. 'How did it go?'

Mario smiled. 'We got the Beanstar!'

'Excellent, excellent!' Merlon laughed. 'You really are super, all of you.' Luigi blushed. 'Now, you are all probably wondering what to do next.' They all nodded. 'My crystal ball has revealed another point of interest in the future: your next object.'

There was a dramatic pause. They waited patiently. After a few moments, O'Chunks broke the silence. 'Well? What 'n blazes is it?'

'A Cobalt Star.'

Mario, Luigi, Peach, Kamek, and Fawful's faces all lit up in recognition. The rest of them remained ignorant. 'Wha's that?' O'Chunks asked.

'The Cobalt Star,' Kamek answered, 'is an incredibly powerful artefact that people generally use to heighten magical powers.'

'It is being one of the most powerful objects of power in the World of Mushrooms,' Fawful added. 'It also has much usefulness if one wishes to be powering a machine.'

'It's incredibly rare,' Kamek continued, 'and is only found in a few select places in the world.' He looked to Mario and Luigi. 'These _thieves_ stole a shard of one from Bowser's Castle a loooong time ago.'

'Well we needed it!' Luigi countered defensively.

'Now now now!' Merlon exclaimed. 'Let's avoid bloodshed on my property, please!' Kamek huffed while Bowser looked at him with mild confusion, obviously forgetting he had ever been in possession of such a rare object. 'To continue, you must get a Cobalt Star. There is only one place near the Mushroom Kingdom that this is possible.' Another pause.

'Well?' O'Chunks asked again. 'Where is—'

'Quiet, I'm taking a meaningful pause!' Merlon snapped. O'Chunks shrunk before him. After another moment, he answered. 'Star Hill.'

'The one Mario and I went to during the Shroob Invasion?' Luigi asked.

'Yes, that one.' Merlon fidgeted with his star button nervously, though Fawful couldn't imagine why.

'There's a Warp Pipe connected to Toad Town that goes there, right?' Mario asked.

'Correction. There _was_ one.'

'Was? What happened to it?'

'Cave in. The pipe collapsed. No casualties, thankfully.'

'So we have to walk all the way there? That sucks!' Luigi complained.

'It's only a day's walk away,' Merlon assured. 'You won't waste much time.'

Blumiere crossed his arms. 'The Void grows with each passing day...and yet we are delayed further and further.'

'You must make do with what you have, Heroes.' He looked away. 'Even if the outlook is...grim.' Fawful thought he saw a melancholy look in his old eyes. He looked at him again. 'You all should go, posthaste. The Void won't slow for you.'

'Alright!' Mario said. 'Let's-a go.' He opened the door and exited, followed by everyone but Fawful. The Bean met the old fortune teller's eyes.

'I have wonder,' he said. 'You seem like you have much sadness, like someone who has tuna fish sandwiches for lunch.' Merlon stared at the floor. 'Is there anything on the mind of yours that you are not telling us?'

Merlon waited. Fawful waited as well. Finally, he answered. 'No. Nothing is on my mind.'

Fawful glared. 'If I am later hearing that you had the withholding of information of usefulness...' He waited a moment for dramatic effect. 'My fury will unfold onto you like that of an angry Chain Chomp!' He spun around, his cloak making a _whoosh_ing sound as it spun too, and exited the room.

When he was outside he looked up into the sky. The Void had grown larger over the last few days. Before it had only been a small dot on the horizon, but now it was several times bigger. 'The day of doom is approaching...' he muttered.

'Scary, huh?' It was Blumiere's wife, Lady Timpani. Fawful nodded. 'I remember when this happened before. The Heroes and I were trying to collect the eight Pure Hearts and stop Count Bleck from destroying all worlds.'

'You? No of the way.' She didn't strike Fawful as a person who would do such a thing. Then again, neither did Peach.

'I was...a lot different back then.'

The two of them stared up at the dark vortex. 'What will be happening to the world when the Void has the destroying of it?' Fawful asked.

'It will disappear completely. All that will be left of it...is a world devoid of anything and everything. White blankness as far as you can see. Not even the floor is visible, but you _can_ walk on it.'

Fawful envisioned the world as such and shivered. 'That will not be happening if Fawful has anything to say about it.' He stared defiantly up at the Void.

'That's the spirit.' Timpani smiled, then walked off to Blumiere's side. Fawful just continued to stare. As he looked into that black nothingness, something began to stir inside of him. It was a dark, evil, primal desire...the desire to destroy everything and leave nothing behind. Images filled his mind, those of levelled, flaming towns, charred corpses lying in the streets. His friends all lay dead on the ground, cold and bloody.

Even Mimi...

_Ba-bump!_

His heart pounded and he felt something dark and evil spreading through his veins. The darkness inside of him delighted at these images, giving Fawful a giddy feeling in his chest...but that only made him upset.

Wait a minute.

His FRIENDS all lay dead on the ground?

Fawful tore his gaze away from the Void and the feelings retreated. He couldn't succumb to this. He felt like he was becoming less like himself and more like...something that could only be described as the very definition of evil. He needed to keep himself sane and normal, lest he destroy everything he held dear. His home, his life.

His "friends"...

Such an odd thought. Did he really have..."friends?" Fawful smiled; he supposed he did.

_Fawful...give them one final...attack for me..._

Fawful's smile disappeared. These people couldn't be his friends. They had made an enemy out of him, and he could never forgive them for their crimes. Never.

'Fawful.' The voice was small.

'Yesing, Mimi?' he replied, deliberately trying to not look at the thing that was eating up the sky.

'The Void's getting bigger...' she whispered. He could sense fear in her voice.

Fawful nodded. 'We must have the creating of the Heart of Purity before it is being too late.'

'It...gives you a sense of hopelessness, doesn't it?' Fawful was getting worried; she sounded more afraid than he thought she should.

'It is.' He looked at her. 'Why the worries?'

'Back when the Void first began to expand, I wasn't on its bad side,' the girl explained. 'Every time I went to a dimension and saw it there, huge in the sky, it gave me a really excited feeling. I knew that the dimension was going to be destroyed, that _all_ of them were going to be destroyed...and I enjoyed it. Now...now that I know how it feels to see it and be afraid...the feeling that death is chasing you as you move, the feeling that there are things you haven't done in your life that you realize you want to do, to feel things you've never felt...' She buried her face in her hands. 'I'm so ashamed of myself!'

Fawful wanted to comfort her, he really did, but he didn't know what to say. He found himself staring up into the Void again, the visions and feelings flowing through him again. For some unbelievable, sick, twisted reason...he enjoyed them. They gave him a feeling he savoured and he didn't know why. All he _did_ know was that looking into the Void's depths stirred something bad inside of him...something very bad.

'Darkness breeds despair...' Fawful heard himself mutter, though it wasn't _really_ him.

'Wh...what?' Mimi said.

'Darkness breeds despair...' Fawful repeated. His mouth curled up into a grin as he looked into the Void. 'What your heart is feeling only has naturalness.' He giggled; it was very unlike any noise he had ever made before. His high pitched voice seemed to quietly reverberate with an ancient evil.

'What's wrong with you Fawful...?' Mimi asked fearfully.

He crossed his arms. 'Nothing.'

_Ba-bump._

'You're acting weird...' Mimi had begun to shake.

_Ba-bump._

'Much wrongness...' Fawful said, evil leaking off his tongue. 'I am acting with much normalness.'

_Ba-bump._

Mimi put a hand on his shoulder and a warmth seemed to spread through him. Fawful suddenly realized how cold he felt. 'Fawful...don't give into the darkness, okay? No matter how much the Chaos Heart tries to make you...don't. It makes you do bad things.'

Fawful snapped out of his mood and shook his head furiously, looking away from the Void. 'Much apologies,' he apologized. 'I have much confusion...'

'Fawful.' Mimi turned his head so they looked into each other's eyes. 'Don't do anything you'll regret. Blumiere almost destroyed the world because of this power.'

As Fawful looked into her eyes he knew he needed to keep this thing in check. He couldn't lose her. He _wouldn't_ lose her. 'Fawful promises to be good,' he said.

Mimi smiled and hugged him tightly. Fawful grew hot, but returned the gesture. 'Thanks.'

She released him and walked over to the rest of the group. Fawful stood there alone, listening to his own heartbeats.

_Ba-bump._

He thought of stealing another glance at the Void, but he knew he shouldn't. He averted his eyes and walked towards the rest of the Heroes.

_Ba-bump._

'Darkness breeds despair...' he muttered to himself.

_Ba-bump._

Fawful had no idea, at the time, that he had just verbally written his own dark prophecy with those three words.

_BA-BUMP!_


	15. Chapter 15: Fight Your Friend

Chapter 15: Fight Your Friend

Merlon

The small Bean scientist glared at him strongly. 'If I am later hearing that you had the withholding of information of usefulness...' He waited a moment and Merlon shifted nervously. 'My fury will unfold onto you like that of an angry Chain Chomp!' The completion of the threat didn't calm the mage's nerves any. Fawful spun on his heels and exited his house.

The fortune teller collapsed into his chair. 'My oh my...' he sighed. 'Despite my experiences...that got my blood pressure up easily. That boy is more frightening than I imagined.'

'I hope you will not be frightened by such an impudent boy in the future.' Nolrem flipped in, followed by his opposite. 'He is only a child.'

'Words cannot describe the things he has done to this kingdom Nolrem. Not to mention there's the Chaos Heart...'

'Don't anger him,' the other Merlon advised. 'That would be unpleasant.'

'_Why_ then,' Toad Town's Merlon exclaimed, 'do we not tell them of the Prognosticus' prophecy?'

'Because, Merlon!' Nolrem snapped angrily. 'Do you have an idea what kind of implications that would do, especially to the children?'

'Fawful and Mimi can hardly be considered children!' the fortune teller retorted. 'The boy is older and mature beyond his years, I'm sure he could handle it—'

'Don't be naive you ignorant fool!' the Dark Tribesman spat. 'He's a child thrown into a situation that men would quiver at, and with the Chaos Heart in his body it's even worse!'

'Fawful's been through similar ordeals,' Merlon pressed. 'He'll be fine.' He crossed his arms. 'As for Mimi, I don't see why you're even bringing her up. Quite frankly, I think you're forgetting what you've told me about her.'

Nolrem's eyes burned into his. 'Mimi,' he said, keeping his voice controlled, 'is an entirely different matter. Her maturity and mind shifts depending on the people she's around and the situations she's in and she can't control that. The same thing goes with her appearance, in ways even I sometimes can't fathom.'

'Your point?'

'My point is that it could have an even worse effect on her depending on her mood. She's not normal.'

'She has a mind and inner strength unlike anyone I've—'

'Merlon and Nolrem!' the Flipside prophet exclaimed. 'I beg of you, keep your heads in order!' He looked from his Toad Town to his Flopside counterpart. Both of them lowered their heads. 'The both of you are acting too rudely for my tastes. You're both stressed and worried, as am I. However, we must remain level-headed and strong. What else _can_ we do?'

'We can continue to look into the future,' the other Merlon answered.

'There is that, yes.'

Nolrem sighed. 'I suppose you are correct. All we can do is hope we find something useful and not...catastrophic.'

Merlon, Merlon, and Nolrem all looked into the fortune teller's crystal ball. 'Oh crystal ball,' its owner sighed. 'Please give us something.' His face reflected off of the foggy surface. '_Anything_...'

Fawful

'Ahh~' Mimi sighed. 'It's good to be in a different dress!' She giggled.

Here they all were, walking again. As luck would have it, they were trudging down same path they had taken on their way to Toad Town. The lake was to their right. 'So Star Hill's that-a-way?' Luigi asked, pointing off of the path.

'Yeah,' Mario answered. 'We'll come to a break in the path soon. There's a forest through it and Star Hill's on the other side.'

'Conveniently placed forest,' Timpani commented.

'That's usually how it works...' Mario and Luigi both replied.

'Well what're we waiting for?' Timpani said jubilantly. 'Let's go!' She suddenly ran off in front.

'Timpani!' Blumiere called. 'Come back!'

'Catch me first!' Fawful heard her laugh.

Blumiere sighed, then laughed and gave chase. The Bros. went after along with the princess and O'Chunks.

'H-hey!' Bowser yelled. 'GRAH! Get back here!' he ran as well, though was much slower than the rest.

Kamek shook his head. 'It's always something with those people.' He shot off on his broom.

Fawful and Mimi stood there, shocked. 'They...left us,' Mimi said.

'That had...much unexpectedness...' Fawful added.

The two green beings looked at each other for a moment. 'Well?' Mimi asked. 'Should we?'

Fawful grinned. 'I am thinking that we should give chase like a hungry dog after a toasted steak hoagie!' Laughing, the two children ran after their comrades.

It felt so uplifting, so amazing, to just run. With all his stuff in his storage cube and nothing weighing him down, he felt as free as the wind blowing past his very small amount of black hair. He threw his hands up, laughing. After probably over ten years of being under the crushing weight of Cackletta's training and evil scheming, letting loose and being a kid felt greater than anything and everything that he had ever done before.

'I HAVE ELATION!' he screamed to the heavens. He laughed and laughed and laughed and fell flat on his face, rolling on the dusty dirt floor before stopping. 'I have pain...'

'Hey doofus, you okay?' Mimi helped him onto his feet. 'Do evil scientists not run much?'

'Fawful scoffs at your jokingness!' Fawful scoffed at her jokingness. 'Fawful will be beating you to the punch! And by punch, I am meaning the GOOAAL!' He started to run, then stopped in his tracks. 'I have sudden realization.' He frowned. 'Where is Midbus?'

Mimi walked up to him. 'I dunno. I haven't seen him around.'

'Much mysteriousness...' He looked ahead. 'They are being very far ahead of you and me.' He took out his Headgear and placed it on his head, the rockets going to life. 'Fawful will have the carrying of you to them!' he beamed.

Mimi looked him up and down. 'Uh...I dunno, you don't seem like the _strong_ type to me Fawful. Don't you have any other thing in there?'

Fawful frowned and put away his Headgear. 'I suppose you have correctness.' He took out his hover platform. 'This should have working.' He lightly grabbed Mimi's hand and they both walked onto it. He stepped on a certain part and the rockets sprang to life.

'Whoa!' Mimi staggered as the platform jerked. Fawful righted her position. 'You sure this thing is safe?'

'I had the designing of it!' Fawful assured.

'Alright then, not safe.'

'Heying!' Fawful glared.

Mimi giggled. 'You overreact at everything Fawfie.'

'I DO NOT HAVE OVERREACTIVENESS!' the Bean shouted.

Mimi giggled again and gave him another peck on the cheek. The boy instantly calmed down, going hot. 'You're so red! Haha!'

Fawful crossed his arms. 'Why are you toying with the emotions that are mine?' he demanded.

Mimi shrugged. 'It's fun.'

Fawful huffed. 'Fawful still has wonder! Where is Dimentio in this picture that is yours?'

Mimi's expression instantly soured. 'Why do you want to know?'

'I am thinking that I have a right.' He didn't have to explain why.

The girl sighed and sat down, her legs hanging over the edge of the hovering platform. 'He's still in my heart, I guess...'

'Even after you almost had deadness because of him?' Fawful sat down too.

'Yeah, even after that.' She rested her chin on her palms. 'But...I gotta move on, right? I can't dwell on him forever.'

Fawful found, once again, that Mimi's age alluded him. He just couldn't tell if she was his age or more around Dimentio's. He figured it must be a shape-shifting thing. He remembered with a shiver Mimi's true form and shook it out of his head.

'How old are you Fawful?'

The sudden question caught him off guard. 'Fawful is being...well, it has been ten years since Cackletta had the finding of him, but Fawful supposes that he could be several years older.'

'So you could be a teenager, for all we know?'

'I am supposing so.'

Mimi smirked. 'That would certainly explain the hormone rushes you get when you see me.'

Fawful had never turned a deeper shade of red. 'Cease! Make with the desisting!' She giggled. 'How old are _you_ being, Mimi?'

Mimi stopped giggling. 'That's not a question you should ask a lady Fawful.'

Fawful glared. 'If you are being young, that should not be problematic.'

Mimi glared as well. 'Look, maybe I just don't want to talk about it.'

The boy crossed his arms and looked away. 'Hmph! Fawful supposes he is not a friend of closeness if you are not trusting him with your _age_.'

There was a pause. Mimi looked stricken with uncertainty. Should she trust him? Or not? After a few moments, she decided on the former. 'I'll tell you.' Fawful turned to look at her. 'I'm...I'm actually...' She swallowed some saliva. 'I'm around 1500 years old, actually.'

Fawful's jaw dropped to the ground. 'Fuh...fuh..._fifteen thousand?_'

Mimi winced as if hit. 'Y-yeah...unbelievable, I know...'

Fawful shifted nervously. Suddenly he felt like Mimi was far too old for him. 'But...but you are not looking as old as you are saying you are!'

'Well DUH.' The "duh" came out really angrily, making Fawful wince. 'Um...sorry. I'm a shape shifter. It's not like I'm gonna let myself age 1500 years. This is who I am, really. I may have been through a lot of years in life, but really I'm a thirteen, fourteen year old girl at heart.' She looked at him in an assuring manner. 'Really.'

'But you had the mentioning...that the spider is being your true form.'

Mimi winced again. 'Please...don't talk about it...' Tears gleamed in her eyes at the mere mention of her true form. 'It reminds me that I'm a...a...'

_'A monster.'_

Fawful and Mimi jumped to their feet, making the platform wobble a little. Fawful quickly drew his blaster. 'Dimentio!' he yelled. 'Be showing yourself to us!'

_'Ahahahaha! Oh how sweet it is to finally see you again!'_ There was a noticeable shimmer as the dimensions were bent and a _ping!_ sounded, revealing the Charming Magician himself. 'Hello hello to my dear green friends again! Ahaha!'

'You!' Mimi exclaimed. 'What're you doing here?'

'Oh, nothing too special.' Dimentio made an exaggerated stretch of his body. Fawful never kept the gun away from him. 'I simply had some important business in this little dimension when I came across my two favourite people!' He clapped his hands together. 'Aren't reunions grand?'

'Make with the up shut!' Fawful spat. 'Why the confronting of us?'

'I just overheard your little chat and thought I'd offer my special opinion.' He grinned, the red mouth on the mask sending shivers down their spines. 'Mimi, you really know how to tug on the boy's heartstrings don't you?'

'Shut up...' Mimi muttered.

'A little girl at heart? Don't make me laugh. You are what you always have been, and the only reason Count Bleck recruited you in the first place.' He leaned slowly forward, and completed his sentence in little more than a whisper. 'A _monster._'

'SHUT UP!' Mimi screamed, whipping five Rubees at him. Dimentio disappeared with a _ping!_ and reappeared behind them.

'Oh you silly girl! Why hide from the irrefutable truth? You're exactly what you were created to be.' He snapped his fingers for the sole purpose of flair. 'The perfect monster!'

'Mimi...' Fawful's heart had begun to pound in sudden fear. 'What...are the words having truth...?'

'No...' Mimi had begun to cry again. 'I'm...I'm not like you! I was never like you!'

'Tell that to the dear Count you so willingly served the in the destruction of all worlds!' The jester chuckled. 'Yes...you're a monster, and always will be. You've served me well in the past, after all.' He snapped his fingers again for flair. 'My perfect, monstrous creation!'

Fawful's head snapped up to look at the magician. 'WHAT?' Fawful glared at him with fury. 'Lies! Lies spat from the tongue like venom from a hissing cobra!'

The poor girl had begun to shake with anguish. 'I'm not...no...that's not true!'

'You keep trying to deny it so often...even from yourself. Oh, I remember your birth, so many centuries ago...you were just like everyone else, you know. Just a little girl with friends, a family, a name to call your own...and then I came.' He laughed, a cold, chilling, sadistic laugh that shook Fawful so much he actually had to cover his ears. Mimi would never look away, her tear-filled eyes shimmering in the sunlight. 'Oh it was such _fun!_ Laying waste to the town, watching it _burn_, the bodies laying in the streets...all because they had the misfortune of coming across the Dark Prognosticus. After a while, I found you, running away from it all, screaming in terror. Oh, music to my ears! You looked so much like Rosabella it was frightening. I killed you oh so gruesomely.' He grinned. '_Really_ think back Mimi...I'm sure you can remember it, even a little.' Apparently, she could. She was sobbing and shuddering, lying on the floor of the platform.

Fawful had had enough. He stepped in front of Mimi protectively. 'Make with the silence! Your words are not having any meaning!'

'Quiet!' Dimentio snapped. He snapped his fingers and the Bean's mouth suddenly clamped shut. He couldn't even budge his jaws slightly. 'I'm not finished yet.' He crossed his arms. 'After that I took you to a...witch, specializing in Pixl experiments. She had told me that using the power of a Pixl in a doll was something she had tried time and time again, but with no success.' He chuckled. 'A human corpse worked quite nicely though. It was interesting. Your skin changed hue during the experiment. You looked so scared and confused.' Mimi, meanwhile, was being brought back to those moments. She remembered them like they were yesterday. 'It took a simple spell to have you under my control. Then you really were the greatest monster I had ever seen! Ahahahaha!' He stopped laughing. 'And then I lost you among the dimensions when a mage intervened. So tragic. After many, many years I thought I'd lost you forever, but then when I finally won the Count's favour and found you in the castle it was like I'd found an old friend!' Fawful's mouth unclamped. 'And that, as they say, is it.'

Fawful was speechless, for once. He felt like everything he thought he knew about Mimi was wrong. The girl pulled herself to her feet, fists clenched. She rubbed the tears out of her eyes. 'All this time...' she said, fighting back her emotions. 'I've been nothing but...your _pawn_...I don't even know what happened when I had the blackout during your control...for all I know...I could have been made to...you could have...'

'Oh hush. You don't really think I would stoop _that_ low to satisfy my desires?' He chuckled again. 'If I even had any. I don't have time for such trivial things.'

'Shut up!' Mimi and Fawful both screamed at the same time. Mimi continued with her anger. 'You evil, rotten, dumb, monster! I hate you I hate you I HATE YOU!'

'You don't know _what_ you feel,' the magician replied mockingly. 'All this time you've been struggling to understand your own heart. You know what I think? I think you should let go of that pathetic emotion called love. Don't you think you'd be far better off without it?'

'Love isn't something you can just blink away!' the girl retorted. 'Someday, somehow, it's going to come back and get you where it hurts!'

'I have agreement!' Fawful yelled.

'And I don't. And that's all that matters.' Dimentio waved his finger in the air and shot a block of sparkling magic at the platform. Instead of exploding, the block burst with a humorous _boink!_ sound, not destroying the platform but knocking it over. The green children flew off it and hit the ground rolling. Both of them got up and fired Rubees and energy blasts at the jester, who simply deflected them tiredly. 'Well aren't you both hasty.' He put out his hand and blasted Fawful off of his feet, then snapped his fingers, making Mimi's body go rigid on her feet. 'Now, let's see you do your job Mimi. It's time to squash my competition.

Mimi's mouth went into a snarl. 'I...hate...you...' Dimentio just smiled.

Fawful picked himself off the ground, taking out his Headgear and activating it. He put it on his head and it went to life, it's steel jaws snarling at their foe. Dimentio turned his attention to Fawful. 'Ah, you. I suppose it's time to eliminate you.' He snapped his fingers and Mimi spun around to face the boy. A look of pain and desperation was on her face. He could tell by looking into her eyes that she wanted help. 'Now Mimi, be a good girl and kill the boy, will you? Oh, and avoid his heart, we don't want my artefact getting damaged again.' He put his hand up.

Tears welled up in Mimi's eyes as she croaked out two words. 'I'm sorry...' Fawful felt tears in his own.

_Snap!_ Mimi's eyes went wide for a moment, then they drooped and her body went limp. 'Ah, such control!' Dimentio beamed. _Snap! _Mimi stood up. A wicked smile went across her face and Fawful suddenly felt very scared of her. 'Now, for the final touch...' _Snap!_ Fawful then heard the words that made his heart turn to ice.

'TRUE MIMI, COME FORTH!' The girl yelled them out with such a cold, cruel, evil hiss that the Bean boy took several steps back. He couldn't look away as Mimi's head spun on her shoulders, stopping upside down and splitting open to reveal her six spider legs. Her body swung as she moved, hanging by a mere thread. 'Urk..._urk...!_' She coughed and gagged for a few moments and turned her head down to look at him. Despite not having any eyes on her expanded head, Fawful knew she could see him._ 'MIMIMIMIMIMIMIMI! Well hello there! Don't you look nice enough to eat, little boy?'_

Fawful was shaking. He had heard her true voice before, that horrible, demonic distortion of her girlish vocals, but now...now it just reeked of pure malevolence. 'I...I-I...' He gulped. His Headgear snapped his jaws and gave a mechanical snarl as if to tell Fawful to man up. Fawful clenched his fists. 'If...if I am needing to battle Mimi...then I will have battle!'

'Good, good!' Dimentio laughed. 'But first...' He waved his hands and the entire world fell away in flat squares. Fawful suddenly found himself in an entirely green dimension. It was also very small. 'Welcome to Dimension D! I've prepared a battlefield for the two of you. Now...' His smile was the most sadistic yet. He disappeared and his voice came from nowhere and everywhere. _'Time to die.'_

_'MIMIMIMIMIMIMIMI!'_

Fawful jumped to the left out of range of a speeding Rubee, firing up Headgear's rockets and taking to the skies. He swerved and weaved out of the way of the sharp red stones. He shot up into the air and bounced off the ceiling, diving underneath her legs and shooting back up. He didn't want to hurt her.

_'Bah! Get back here you stupid geek!'_ Her legs clamped onto the ceiling and she spat more Rubees.

'Mimi, I am not wanting to be hurting your face!' the boy lamented. 'Please, have realization! It is Fawful!'

_'Oh Fawful, stop pleading,_' Dimentio's bored voice said from everywhere. _'Your efforts are all for naught. You might as well just kill her.'_

'NEVER!' Fawful yelled. A_ zing_ went through the air and a Rubee smashed into the back of his head, sending him spinning down to the ground. 'Pain! Such pain! Ough...'

Mimi was on him in an instant, her legs pinning him to the floor. _'MIMIMIMI! End of the line, cutie!' _Fawful couldn't help groan at how bittersweet that sentence was. A very large Rubee came out of her mouth. He squeezed his eyes shut as he heard the spitting sound of it flying towards his chest...

No impact. No pain. He opened his eyes to see it hovering centimetres away from his chest. _'HUH?'_ Mimi gasped.

_'No no, that will not do at all!'_ Dimentio said. _'No damage to the heart!'_ The Rubee flew backward and hit Mimi's face with the side, making her fly off of Fawful.

Fawful grinned. 'HAHAHAHA!' His high pitched laugh echoed off the walls. 'Fawful thanks you, clown of stupidness!'

_Ping! _Dimentio suddenly appeared in front of him, grinning. 'You, my friend, are very welcome.' Fawful was blasted off of his feet by a magical explosion and he smashed into the wall at the end of the dimension. The magician disappeared, laughing.

'Grr...' Fawful peeled himself off the wall. 'I have fury...' He stopped and looked around; Mimi wasn't there. 'I have wonder...where is Mimi...?'

He didn't notice the girl's body, suspended by the six legs, lower itself behind him. _'MIMIMIMIMIMIMIMI!'_

He screamed, a ridiculously high, terrified scream, and ran to the other end of Dimension D. Both Mimi and Dimentio laughed at him as he ran. _'Such cowardice from a cowardly child! Ahahahaha!'_

Fawful stopped and spun around, taking a defensive stance. His Headgear's mouth burned with energy. He stared right at Mimi. '...'

_'Ooh, are you a mute now? Mimimi...'_

'...Mimi...' Fawful said quietly. The spider's mouth made an expression of slight surprise. 'If you are not recognizing Fawful as your friend...' His Headgear flew off his head and went to the other side of Mimi. Fawful took out his blaster. '...than Fawful will recognize you as an enemy.' Without another word, he raised the blaster and fired.

Mimi spat a Rubee at the blast, both projectiles exploding on contact. Fawful ran straight at her, wildly firing blasts while his Headgear went around the giant spider firing its own. Fawful's were more of distractions as he didn't want to hurt her, so he missed on purpose. Headgear's made contact.

_'Ack! Ow! Stop that you meanie!'_ she screamed.

'She has immaturity...' Fawful noted.

_'GAH! Enough!_' Rubees suddenly burst out of Mimi's inflated head, completely covering it in the red jewels. Three of her legs stuck in the ground while the other three stuck in the ceiling. Her head spun around and launched itself at Fawful. He gave a yelp and leaped out of the way, hearing a grating sound as the Rubee-covered head scraped against the ground. It went up the leg line and bounded off the ceiling before coming back and trying to hit Fawful again. The Headgear swooped down and blasted her, the shots just deflecting right off. Mimi stopped spinning and started walking on the ceiling. Fawful decided he'd had enough and blasted her right in the face. _'Graaugh! Stupidhead!'_ she screeched.

'I have apologies...' Fawful muttered. One of Mimi's legs shuddered, but remained attached. Fawful got an idea. 'Headgear!' he called. 'Have the biting of her legs!'

_'H-huh...? OUCH!' _The girl screamed in pain as the Headgear bit down hard on one of her knee joints. _'GET OFF GET OFF GET OOOOOOOOFF! WAAAAH!'_

Fawful climbed up one of her legs onto her head. 'I have more apologies Mimi!' he said, and aimed the blaster at her skull. She squealed and flung her head around, throwing Fawful off of it. His Headgear still had a firm grip on it. 'Headgear!' he screamed. 'PULL!'

It complied. Shooting off away from the spider without letting go, it pulled hard on her leg. _'OW OW OW OW OW OW! STOP! PLEASE!'_ Fawful shut his eyes for what he knew was coming.

_Riiip! Squelch!_ The leg tore right off at the head, spewing a bizarre green liquid everywhere. _'AAAAAAHHHH!'_ The distorted scream of the girl in pain tore at Fawful's heart. She balanced herself on her other five legs, but she wobbled a little.

_'Oh my.'_ Dimentio appeared. 'A disturbing turn of events.' He did a spin in the air and laughed. 'Time for my entry!'

Fawful was about to fire again at Mimi when Dimentio collided with him, sending both of them crashing into the wall. The jester pinned him against it, a twisted grin on his masked face. 'Ack! Have the releasing of me!' the Bean demanded.

'Oh no, I'll do no such thing.' Dimentio brought his fist back and punched Fawful in the face. He threw him to the ground and prepared to hit him with a blast of dark magic. 'You've been such a thorn in my side for so long, but now it's time to pull you out. Ciao!'

Fawful was now desperate. 'H-Headgear!' he screamed. 'Help!' Mimi, however, had the helmet busy and wouldn't let it go. 'Uh oh...'

'Have a good aftergame Fawful! Ahahahahaha!'

Fawful put his hand in front of his face in a futile, instinctive attempt to protect himself. This was the end. He knew it, but he didn't want to accept it. He willed himself not to, to do anything to save himself...anything.

_Ba-bump!_

A burst of energy exploded in his chest and travelled up his arm and out his palm. A bizarre sound filled the air, that of dark energy colliding with solid matter...that matter being the jester's face. There was a great explosion and Dimentio flew across the room and crashed right into Mimi, the two of them tumbling over. Dimentio rolled onto the ground and staggered to his feet, gripping his face tightly. He wrenched his now smouldering mask off his face and threw it to the ground. 'Detestable brat!' he spat. 'My mask is ruined!' The glare on his actual humanoid face seemed to scare Fawful more than if it were on his mask one. He sighed and grinned again. 'Ah well, I can always fix it.' He snapped his fingers. 'Mimi, destroy him.'

No answer.

'...Mimi?'

_'WAAAAAAAAH!' _

Fawful gasped and Dimentio jumped away as Mimi flung herself around wildly with Fawful's Headgear clamped firmly onto her head. Fawful seized the opportunity and ran at her, shooting Dimentio in the side with a blast before taking careful aim and shooting the ligament that connected Mimi's leg to her head. There was a small burst of flame as the ligament blew apart, splattering slime everywhere, the leg crashing to the floor. A demonic screech of agony filled the air. Fawful made himself shut the noise out and ignore his friend's pain as he aimed at her third leg and fired, then her forth, then fifth. Soon the huge arachnid was teetering on a single limb, her upside down mouth arced in the most pained expression Fawful had ever seen. Her dead body was soaked in the green fluid, flinging around on its thread of skin. Fawful slowly took aim one last time...and pulled the trigger.

Mimi's last leg ligament exploded, the green slime splattering on the walls, floor, and ceiling like the rest. She screamed her lungs out before her head slid right off her leg and fell to the ground with a hideous squelch. The Headgear let go and went back on Fawful's head, completely clean, miraculously enough. Mimi writhed in pain on the floor. Fawful fought back his tears.

_'Ah...ahh! It hurts...it hurts it hurts it hurts!' _she screamed. A poof of purple smoke engulfed her and she stood before them in her girl form, rubbing her aching joints. 'Ow...' she moaned.

'Mimi...do you have wellness?' Fawful asked.

He ducked as a Rubee was flung at him. 'You stupid dummy!' Rage was in her eyes. She ran at him, conjured up another gem, and smashed him across the face with it, his glasses flying off of his face and him falling to the ground. She kneeled and gripped his collar. 'I'll smash your stupid face in!' The Bean was horrified; his friend was still under Dimentio's control.

'Yes, yes indeed!' Dimentio exclaimed, brushing his hair out of his face. 'Finish him Mimi, be done with him!'

'M-Mimi...' Fawful croaked, tears falling down his cheeks. 'It...is Fawful...your...friend of bestness...'

'End his game, girl! Do it now!'

'Please...help...'

'KILL HIM!'

Mimi locked eyes with Fawful for a moment. As the two children stared into each other's eyes, something seemed to dawn on Mimi. She tightened her fists around Fawful's collar and shook. She let go and slowly rose. 'You controlled me...' she said. Fawful suddenly was hopeful. 'You made me attack my friend...' Her head snapped up and she locked eyes with Dimentio. 'But...I am not your servant anymore!'

Dimentio's eyes widened. 'Wh-WHAT?'

She swung her hand and an extra sharp Rubee flew through the air at him and hit its mark, going right through his right shoulder and firmly lodging itself in his body.

'AUGH!' Dimentio yelled out in pain. He dropped to his knees, gripping the wound. Thick, black blood had begun to leak out of it and onto the ground.

'That's right!' Mimi spat, preparing more Rubees. 'I don't care what you think, you aren't controlling _me _anymore!' Fawful took the time to retrieve his glasses.

The jester flung his one good arm in the air. 'Mercy!' he cried. 'Uncle I cry, uncle!'

'You aren't getting away that easily,' the girl said, venom in her words.

'Hehehehehe...' Dimentio giggled. 'Aha...AHAHAHAHAHAHA!' He flung both arms up and fell onto his back, the Rubee making a _clang_ sound as it hit the ground. 'Oh you poor misguided girl! You have no idea what's in store for all of you! No idea! Ahahahahahaha!' He picked himself off the floor, leaning on the wall. Both heroes kept their eyes on him. 'The prophecies point to your utter _failure!_ HAHAHA!'

Fawful and Mimi both froze. 'What...what did you just say?' Mimi exclaimed.

'I said...' the jester answered. '"The prophecies point to your utter _failure!_ HAHAHA!"'

'I know what you said! What in the worlds do you mean by it?'

'Hehehe...such ignorance. The Light and Dark Prognosticuses both have but a single verse in them, you know. A single, prophetic verse.'

Both were silent for a moment. Mimi asked the question they were afraid to know the answer to. '...what do they say?'

'"The Void will swallow all!"' Dimentio cackled. He began to repeat it in a singsong voice. 'The Void will swallow aaaall, the Void will swallow aaaall! Ahahahahahaha!' He gave an exaggerated sigh. 'Pain does such awful things to one's mind, doesn't it? Hehe...'

'You...you...I want some answers Dimentio! What do they mean?' Mimi ran up to him and grabbed him as she had done to Fawful.

Dimentio just giggled. 'Why should I? You're the enemy, after all.'

'I swear to Grambi!' Mimi yelled at him, conjuring up yet another Rubee. 'I will ram this thing through your skull unless you tell me what I want to know!'

He locked eyes with her and chuckled lightly. 'There is no need to be angry just because I don't return your love, Mimi darling.'

Mimi snapped. She screamed with rage and stabbed at the magician's forehead.

_Ping!_

_'Ahahahaha!'_ Dimentio disembodied voice echoed off the walls. _'Ciao, friends! I'll be back to end your games later...unless the Void does it first!'_

'Dimentio!' Mimi yelled. 'Stop!' There was no answer. She slumped, defeated. 'He's...gone.'

Fawful walked over to her. 'Mimi...I...apologies from Fawful.'

She shook her head. 'Forget it. What else could you have done?' There was a minute of silence as they took in everything they'd learned. 'Do you think...that Dimentio was telling us the truth? Do the prophecies...really say we're going to die? _Both_ of them?'

'Fawful...is not having any answers...'

Suddenly all of existence fell away in squares again and they found themselves back where they were before. They looked at each other. 'We should get back,' Mimi advised. Fawful nodded. He found his platform lying on the ground and turned it over. They got on it and powered it up. 'They're all going to have to hear this,' Mimi said. Fawful nodded again.

'Have the tight gripping,' he said. 'Falling equals ouch.' Fawful fought to keep his weak knees supporting him as the girl wrapped her hands around his waist tightly.

'Alright,' she said, holding him close. 'Let's go.'

The pair shot off where the rest of the group was sure to be. Doubt was in their minds whether or not they would succeed...but they had to press on. They knew the rest of them would agree with them. Handing Dimentio a victory was not an option.


	16. Chapter 16: Confliction

Chapter 16: Confliction

Midbus

'Ungh...'

Midbus struggled to his feet, a large bump forming on his head. He clutched his head gingerly.

'What...happened?' he wondered aloud. The last thing he remembered was resting with the group. He had been sitting alone, resting, when...

He didn't remember. Maybe he lost some of his memory upon being struck on the head. He stood up, his head throbbing. It was odd. Midbus thought he had a really hard head, yet he had been knocked out like nothing. 'Strange...' he murmured. 'Very.'

He looked around. He was in some sort of dismal, black room. Black torches hung on the black walls and black flames burned. White outlined everything, making it easier to see. A lot of it seemed smooth, and he could see his face in the floor. The bump on his head was quite large. There were no doors in sight, so he didn't see a way out.

'Murgh...not good...' He looked around the room. There were windows around, but they were relatively small and wouldn't be able to fit his large frame. There was absolutely nothing. 'Grah! Escape! Must escape!' He punched the wall in anger and frustration. Not a crack. He punched again and again. 'BRAAAAAAGH!' His next impact likely shook the castle, but nothing happened.

'My oh my, such a fiery temper!'

Midbus spun around to see a jester wearing purple and yellow clothes, a black and white mask covering his face. He was floating high enough for Midbus to have to look up to see him, and grinning at him, his eyes probing him as if analyzing something. 'Dimentio,' Midbus said. 'You are him.'

'Such powers of observation!' the Charming Magician laughed. The sarcastic insult went right over Midbus' head. 'And you, based off of your rotund form and pig-like appearance, must be Midbus, correct?'

'...yes,' the aforementioned rotund pig answered.

Dimentio grinned. 'Splendid! So glad we could introduce ourselves! Allow me to come down to your level.' He went down and touched the ground lightly. 'There. No difference between our levels, yes?'

'Enough!' Midbus roared angrily, grinding his fists together. 'You mock me!'

'Me? Mock you?' He put on a feigned pained look. 'I wouldn't _dream_ of it!' He laughed. Midbus didn't. 'Do you like my interrogation room? I kept it as it was. Very bleak and hopeless. he chuckled to himself. 'Now, you're probably wondering why you're here and how you got here. I'm afraid it was necessary to knock you out in Dimension D. You wouldn't have come without a fight.'

Midbus suddenly remembered. He had been resting, then the world had fallen away in squares and he had found himself in a green dimension. Before he could wonder exactly where he was, something very hard collided with the back of his skull, knocking him unconscious. 'You...' He couldn't find the words.

'Esmine was so helpful once I supplied her with a large enough object to bludgeon you with.' He chuckled. 'But enough of this idle chatter. How about we get down to business?' He teleported with a _ping_ and grabbed Midbus' shoulder with one hand, snapping the other to create a black chair big enough to fit the huge pig. 'Go on, sit down, the chair won't bite!' He shoved him into the chair and snickered. 'Probably.' He floated a few feet away and snapped his fingers, creating a purple and yellow throne fit only for him. He sat down. 'How about we have a little talk, you and I...face to face.' He removed his mask and dropped it.

Midbus froze. The sadistic smile and unusually calm demeanour on the masked face had sent chills down his spine, but to see the smile and demeanour on a face that appeared to be human (despite the dark blue skin colour) really scared him. His grin was wide and his bright yellow eye sparkled with knowledge. The dull grey one conveyed knowledge too, despite not sparkling.

'Has the cat got your tongue? Ahahahahahaha!' He clapped his hands together. 'The reason that you're here, my friend, is this:' He paused, letting the tension grow. 'Join me, Midbus. Join me and crush those heroes.'

It took him a moment to realize what the jester had said. When he did, he honestly had to weigh his options. On one hand, being with the heroes was a bit of a handicap. He only knew villainy, and he had to admit that Dimentio had more power. On the other hand, the heroes had an annoying tendency to come out victorious despite the odds...not to mention Fawful was on the side of the heroes. Fawful had taken him in when nothing was going right. Fawful was his master, and he, his minion. There was a bond between them...that couldn't be ignored. But still...he could give that up...he could have a new master. He didn't know what to do!

Dimentio leaned back, regarding the giant pig. 'Think, Midbus. There are only two options. All that I ask you to do...is choose.' He stretched. 'I'll even make it easier on you. Instead of killing you if you refuse, I'll simply transport you back to them. They'll die in the end anyway.' Midbus looked into the jester's eyes and saw the truth. 'I'm a jester of my word.'

Midbus cleared his throat. He had to make a decision. After a moment's more thought, he gave his answer.

Fawful

Fawful zoomed into camp with Mimi clutching his waist tightly. He fired past them and needed to about-face and go back slower. The abrupt turnaround nearly threw the both of them off, causing Mimi to scream, but they made it back without suffering any injuries. They hopped off and Fawful put the platform back into his storage cube.

Mimi was shaking. 'T-t-too f-fast...'

'Apologies,' Fawful said. 'Perhaps Fawful should have gone slower.'

'Yes you should have!'

'Mimi!' It was Nastasia who called. She had, unlike the rest, just flipped a fair distance ahead and waited for them to come running to her. She ran up to her and tried to steady Mimi, but to no success. 'Hold still and look into my eyes.' Mimi did. Nastasia lowered her glasses and red squares suddenly spun around Mimi. _'Stop shaking,'_ she commanded. Mimi did.

'Whew!' she breathed, relieved. 'Thanks!'

Fawful was impressed. 'I did not have knowledge that that was being possible.'

'Hypnosis does more things than control slaves,' the secretary replied.

'Guys, get to the important stuff,' Mario cut in.

'Where in the world did you go off to?' Blumiere demanded.

'We was worried a lot about'cha!' O'Chunks added.

'Guys, guys, it's okay!' Mimi assured. 'We, um...' She fell silent. Fawful recalled Dimentio's words. _'The prophecies point to your utter _failure!_ HAHAHA!' _Not good. 'We...'

Nastasia looked at her carefully. 'What did you see Mimi?'

'We had a run in with...Dimentio.'

The camp fell silent. 'Of course,' Blumiere muttered. 'Wherever there's trouble, there's that psychotic jester.'

'What did he do?' Nastasia demanded. 'Did he hurt you?' Fawful was taken aback; she had never lost her cool composure before.

'I'm _fine_ Nassy, I promise.' Mimi was just as bewildered. 'I didn't get hurt...' Fawful fought to keep himself from blurting out exactly what happened; obviously she wanted her ordeal to be known to only them. 'But...'

'But what?' She wouldn't let a single thing pass.

'Gosh Nassy, you're really worried.' Mimi gave her a small push. 'Sorry, personal space and all.' She cleared her throat. 'Anyway...um...'

'Mimi, be shooting it out in saliva!' The whole group stared at the Bean. '...what?'

'I think he means spit it out,' Mimi guessed. Fawful nodded. The green girl took a deep breath. 'Dimentio said...that we're all doomed.' Upon hearing those words, Mario and Luigi suddenly did the one thing that nobody expected them to:

'HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!'

They laughed. They laughed harder than anyone had ever seen them. 'What's so funny?' Mimi growled.

Luigi wiped a tear from his eye. 'Oh Mimi, you can't take a villain seriously when he says that. Do you have any idea how many times someone's told my bro and I that we were doomed?'

'Too many to count,' Mario snickered. 'Don't worry, he's just trying to scare you.'

'Guys, this is serious!' Mimi retorted.

'No, trust us, it's not,' the green plumber replied.

'What if the Prognosticuses say were doomed?'

'What're you talking about?' Luigi was still laughing a little.

'What I'm saying is—'

'BOTH BOOKS ARE PUTTING THE DOOM UPON US!' Fawful screamed, interrupting her.

They stopped laughing. 'Okay, now that doesn't make any sense at all,' Mario said.

'Dimentio was saying that the books of darkness and light _both_ had the same words on their paper which are foretelling the doom of our faces.'

There was a hush. 'But that's...that's impossible...' Timpani said.

'The Light Prognosticus is supposed to counteract the dark one!' Blumiere added forcefully. 'Why would BOTH of them foretell our demise?'

'I don't know!' Mimi yelled. 'All I know is that Dimentio said that both books say we're screwed.'

'We are going to have screws in our persons?' Fawful cried. The group ignored him. '...can someone please have the talking to Fawful?'

'What...do the books say? What is their prophecy?'

'It's small...very small.' Mimi gulped. 'It was...' The group leaned in. '"The Void will swallow all."'

Shudders went down everyone's spines. 'Tha's all...?' O'Chunks breathed. Mimi and Fawful nodded. The Scottish man punched his palm and yelled out a curse.

All of the adults eyes widened. Fawful gave a blank look. 'What meaning was that word having?' he asked.

'N-nothing Fawful, nothing!' Timpani answered hastily. She turned to O'Chunks, viciously whispering something only the two of them could hear. 'O'Chunks! There are _children_ here!' He muttered an apology. She turned back to them. 'Do you think he's telling the truth?'

'I...don't know...' Mimi sighed. 'We'd have to ask Merlon. But we can't waste any time.'

'All we can do is press on, regardless of any unfortunate news,' Blumiere said.

Fawful put his hand up in the air like a student wanting to ask the teacher a question. They all looked at him. 'Um...yes, Fawful?' Peach asked him.

'Where is Midbus?'

Everyone looked around. 'I haven't seen him,' Luigi answered.

'Me neither,' Mario said.

'I haven't seen the dumb pig anywhere,' Bowser added.

'I don't know,' Kamek said. 'The imbecile probably got himself lost.'

Fawful had no idea where his minion might be. 'I have confusion once more...'

Suddenly there was a deep yell of surprise from directly above all of them as the anthropomorphic pig fell from the sky and landed right on top of Luigi. All they heard from him before impact was "What's th—"

'Luigi!' Mario gasped.

'MIDBUS!' Fawful beamed, obviously not caring about the green plumber's wellbeing. 'You are being a minion of badness and gave Fawful the worries!'

'Mrph...prm...hmph!' Luigi yelled.

Midbus moved. 'What?'

'I said "GET OFF!' Luigi jumped up and glared at the pig. 'You coulda killed me!'

Midbus looked away. 'Sorry.'

'Where did you have the leaving to Midbus?' Fawful demanded.

Midbus hesitated before answering. 'Dimentio.'

Suddenly everyone was paying more attention to him than normal. 'WHAT?' the Bean scientist exclaimed. 'Be telling me everything that has transpired between the jester of craziness and the one who is you!'

'Join him,' Midbus replied. 'He wanted me to. Said heroes would die. Promised me power. Made me choose.'

Fawful was silently reaching for his blaster. 'And...and what did you have the answering of?'

'"No." I would not. I will stay with you all.' He cleared his throat. 'Even if you are doomed.'

Fawful relaxed. 'Fawful knew you would never have the betraying of him!' He smiled widely. 'You are a minion of greatness Midbus! The bestest minion that Fawful had ever been having under his command! I HAVE PRIDE!' He hopped up and down a bit. Several people giggled, but he didn't care. He had his loyal minion, and he was happy about it. 'When will we have the moving?' he demanded to Mario. 'I have energy! We must have haste!'

Mario laughed. 'I couldn't agree more Fawful.' He turned in the direction of the forest. 'Come on guys, let's-a go!' They marched on.

Fawful stayed there for a moment. 'Fawful...and the red fink-rat...agreeing?' A feeling was forming in his chest and he didn't know if it felt bad or good. He followed the group. As he walked he stole a look at the Void. It was bigger than it had been before. 'We must have haste...' he muttered to himself.

Dimentio

'I'm BACK!' Dimentio cackled as he shoved the doors to the meeting hall open. The motley group of minions turned. 'How are my wonderful minions on this day?'

'Better than you are, from the looks of your shoulder,' Esmine answered. Dimentio noted that she had changed clothes: today she was wearing more of the gothic lolita fashion, which seemed to be her style. However, it was a black dress that went down to her knees, decorated with white lace.

Dimentio looked at his wound. He hadn't been able to heal it, probably because of a compound on Mimi's gems. 'This? Hah!' He smiled. 'It's but a flesh wound, my dear.'

She squinted. 'Looks like it goes right through your arm.'

'Enough.' Dimentio waved his hand. 'Obviously a costume mending is in order.'

'I'm bored,' Doopliss complained.

'I'm ichin' fer some action, pard!' Grubba said.

'Minions, minions, all in due time!' the jester assured. 'Actually...your time is nigh.' He grinned. 'Thanks to our dear Duplighost's shameful defeat at the hands of the heroes, they have secured the Beanstar, the first powerful artefact necessary to create the second Purity Heart.' Doopliss sulked. 'However...it is time to redeem yourself Doopliss.' The ghost looked up. 'They are heading towards Star Hill to acquire an item known as a "Cobalt Star."'

'And you want us to go and nab it before they can?' Doopliss guessed.

'No.' The jester shook his head. 'What I want you to do is make sure they never reach the Star.'

Doopliss had the widest grin ever on his face. 'You mean you actually want us to fight them?'

'Yes.'

Both Grubba and Doopliss flipped over to Dimentio's side. 'Hooowee!' Grubba hooted. ''Bout time!' Both minions looked like they were given their greatest Christmas present.

'Ahahaha! Your impatience is like that of a small child on the eve of a wonderful holiday! Go intercept them before they reach the forest. If they reach the Cobalt Star...' He paused, stressing the importance of this mission.

'I read ya loud and clear, yer Magnificence!'

'Grubba, the other minions could learn from your flattery.' The magician spun around in the air. 'Now! Doopliss! Grubba! Make haste and depart!' They both bowed and Doopliss flipped out. Before Grubba could, Dimentio stopped him with magic. 'Actually, perhaps I command too quickly. Grubba, I would like to give you a special gift.' He conjured up an orb of dark magic. 'This shall grant you powers beyond anything you have ever experienced.' He snapped his fingers and the orb flew right at the Clubba and into his body. 'Use it well.'

'I...er...' Grubba began testing his body actions. 'Don't feel different.'

'You have to activate the power, of course. But only do that when needed.' Grubba bowed again and gave this thanks before flipping out after Doopliss.

Dimentio snapped his fingers and Valex appeared in the room in an instant. 'Valex, take a handful of my creations and go into the forest. If they get past Grubba and Doopliss I'll need you to end their games.' The humanoid nodded and disappeared.

There was a short silence as Dimentio settled back onto his pillar.

'What?' Esmine said. 'Nothing for me?'

Dimentio looked at her. 'I'm afraid, my dear Esmine, that you will have to sit out for the time being.'

The girl crossed her arms. 'That's not fair.'

'Life isn't fair, deary.'

After a moment, her frown turned into a smile. 'So...that means it's just you and I...huh?' She giggled.

The jester's smile didn't waver. 'Such foolish thoughts and desires will go to waste under me, Esmine. You would do well to forget them.'

'You know that's impossible, right?' She smirked. 'You're just too...irresistible.'

'Ahaha. I can't help but agree with you.' He laid on his back, humming The Ultimate Show and waving his finger like a conductor. 'Oh woe. I feel like there's a brilliant idea in my mind and it's refusing to come out.'

'Something to stop those heroes?' Dimentio nodded. 'Really, I can't believe you haven't done the obvious villain thing yet.'

'Oh?' He sat up and looked at her curiously. 'And what, pray tell, is this "obvious villain thing?"'

'Turn them against each other. Exploit their weaknesses and fears, making them suspect one another, then let them break apart and pick them off. One...by...one.' She grinned, showing her sharp teeth.

'Ah, that. They wouldn't turn on each other unless the Underwhere itself froze over. Mario allowed Fawful to stay with them despite the obvious danger he puts them in.' He sighed and shook his head. 'No, the only way that could work is if they were forced to.'

'You mean like brainwashing?' Esmine ventured. 'I don't think any of us can do that.'

'No, I'm afraid not. The only person I'm aware of who wields the formidable powers of hypnosis is Nastas—'

Something clicked in his mind. His eyes suddenly widened and he sprang up in the air. 'EUREKA!' Dimentio exclaimed. He had the widest and wickedest grin on he had had in a while. 'Such a brilliant idea! Esmine, I don't know how to thank you enough! AHAHAHAHAHA!'

'I can think of a way or two...' Esmine whispered to herself, chuckling. 'What exactly are you thinking of?'

'Nastasia is the only person I know who holds the power to brainwash people with ease. Thankfully, there is also an object I used during the first Chaos Heart Incident that is able to brainwash someone with a little more difficulty.' He did a dramatic summersault in the air. 'I'm afraid I must leave you for a time, Esmine. I'm taking a small journey...to the caverns of the Floro Sapiens. AHAHAHA!'

He disappeared with a _ping!_

Grubba

'What a conveniently-placed forest,' Doopliss said.

'Yeap,' Grubba agreed.

It was a very vast forest, Grubba had to admit. It stretched wide in both directions, left and right, and was probably very dense. Apparently the Mario Bros. had traversed through a lot of forests like this, but he couldn't help but think it would be difficult to cross this one. There was a small wooden house at the entrance to the forest.

'You think someone lives there?' Doopliss wondered.

'I'd bet my bod on it, pardner.' Grubba grinned. 'How 'bout we give 'im a warm welcome?'

They went up to it and opened the door to find an old-looking Toad in hiking gear in the house. 'Hey!' he said angrily. 'What's the big idea barging into someone's house uninvited? Get out!'

The two villains looked at each other and smiled, then looked back to the Toad. 'Gimmie a moment Grubba,' Doopliss said, disappearing into a puff of purple smoke. When he next spoke his voice was distorted and monstrous. _'This should only take a second...'_

Fawful

'Are we being at the destination of our desires yet?' Fawful asked.

'No,' Mario replied.

A few moments passed.

'Are we being at the destination of our desires _yet?_' the Bean ventured again.

'_No_ Fawful,' the red plumber answered.

A few more moments passed.

'Are we being—'

'NO FAWFUL, WE ARE NOT!' Mario yelled.

Fawful jumped, startled. 'Fink-rat of unfairness...' he muttered.

'You know, if you just thought of something to keep your mind off of things it might go by faster,' Luigi suggested. 'Take me, for example. When I'm bored I like to think of—'

'Fawful is not caring about your fink-ratish thoughts, green, mustached fink-rat!' Fawful snarled, now in an thoroughly bad mood.

'He's right you know,' Mimi said.

'Pah!' Fawful grunted. 'What do you spend your time of boredom thinking about then?'

'The future...' Mimi said.

'Oh?' Fawful was intrigued. 'And what are you seeing in your future?'

'It's...' Mimi fell silent. When she spoke again, her voice was small. 'It's...bleak.'

'"Bleak?" Why does it have bleakness? Are you not believing in the ones who are us? Do you not have confidence that we will have success?'

'I...don't know. I like to think we'll win and all...but the prophecies...and the...'

Fawful felt a pit grow in his stomach. He too had been thinking the same thoughts. If both Prognosticuses foretold the same end, did that mean they were, as Mimi put it, "screwed?" 'Do not have worry. The brothers of red and green have had odds that had bleakness before, and yet they have had victory many many _many_ times over! And they are even being here with us, so no worries from you!'

Mimi sighed. 'Thanks...but I don't know.'

Fawful looked up in the sky, into the dark depths of the Void. He felt the darkness inside of him stir up and he looked away. 'I am not knowing either,' he admitted. 'But...that is not going to have the stopping of me. I am going to have perseverance, even though fate is being against me. It does not matter what, I will have success, for everything that I am holding dear to my heart in this world.'

Mimi was now staring at him. 'Wow...that's...really inspiring Fawful.' She looked more determined. 'You're right...we can't give up and let him win.'

'No. We will not have defeat! We will have victory!'

'Yeah!' Mimi jumped up in the air. 'You know...I kinda know what it's like now to be in Mario's shoes. That must be what he thinks every single time he goes up against a villain. It was probably what he was thinking when he went up against _you_.'

At that moment, Fawful suddenly knew what it was like to stand in the Mario Brothers' shoes as well. Up until that point he had only really seen them as enemies with no purpose, no reason. He had no idea why they did what they did, why they had opposed him, Cackletta, Bowser, and every other enemy they had ever faced. It was all for what they cared about. And him...why had he done it? To rule the world? Suddenly villainy didn't seem so clear to him anymore...

The forest was gigantic. It was a huge mass of thick, green trees that abruptly started growing at a certain point, stretching far to the left and right and probably was very long. The path they had been following went right into a clear entrance into the forest.

'That forest is so huge!' Mimi exclaimed.

'That IS a big forest,' Mario agreed. 'But they're usually all around this size. Luigi and I have gone through a lot of forests, right bro?' Luigi nodded.

'Hey!' Bowser said. 'There's some sort of house over there with an old dude in a rocking chair outside of it.' There indeed was. And the old dude looked completely normal to everyone except for a single person.

'No way...' Mario breathed. He got closer and his eyes widened. 'YOU!'

'Ah, if it ain't my ol' pal Gonzales!' Grubba, former manager of the Glitz Pit, exclaimed. 'Hoo boy, it's sure been a while eh?'

'What the HECK are you doing here and why aren't you locked up?' the red clad plumber spat.

'Is this some sort of friend of yours?' Nastasia asked.

'I dunno, 'e kinda seems like 'n enemy,' O'Chunks said.

'The locked up part clued you into that?' Timpani added.

'Gonzales, Gonzales, why do ya hafta bully this ol' countryman? I already did my time!' He got off his rocking chair, laughing. 'Hyuk hyuk hyuk! The prison cell's not a dandy place, I tell ya!' He elbowed Mario in the shoulder. 'But it's all water under the bridge now eh? So, have ya had any more tussles since our little match? I reckon there's been tons!'

'Listen, we don't have time for reunions,' Mario huffed. 'Really, I don't believe you at all, but that's not important right now as we've got more important things to deal with.'

'Oh? More important than little ol' Grubba?' He pointed into the sky. 'You mean that there hole in the sky?'

'Yeah, that hole in the sky,' Mario said. He looked annoyed. Fawful was more curious as to how such a harmless looking old man could be a villain Mario remembered so easily.

'Yeap, I suppose the Void's a bit of an issue fer you slowpokes. How long's it been since the Chaos Heart's been created now?'

'I don't know, I haven't been keeping—' He started. 'Wait, what did you just say?'

'Hyuk hyuk hyuk! Messin' with you's just the greatest thing ever innit?' He smiled. 'Yeap, you're doin' a fine job o' collectin' those objects, but you aren't gonna get yer dirty little grabbers on the Cobalt Star, no sirree!' He looked at the rocking chair he had been sitting on. 'C'mon Doopliss, time fer a good ol' fashioned brawl!'

_Poof!_ The familiar Duplighost was suddenly at Grubba's side. 'Do you have any idea how hard it is to hold your fat behind without snapping under you? I almost broke to pieces!'

'Now that there ain't polite, callin' a man out on his middle! I'm in prime condition!'

'Whatever.' Doopliss' eyes bore into Mario with intense hatred. 'Thing is, I've got a bone to pick with a certain overweight plumber here, and no one's getting in my way.'

'I beat you once Doopliss, and because everyone here knows your name you can't steal their body and name,' Mario taunted.

'Hah! I don't need any cheap tricks this time, because I'm gonna wipe the floor with you the old fashioned way!'

'Not if we have anything to say about it!' Timpani challenged.

'I'll fight alongside him!' Blumiere said.

'The only one to beat Mario is ME!' Bowser roared. 'Kamek'll help too, because I say he will.'

The Magikoopa drew his wand. 'Guess I've gotta fight too.' He chuckled.

'Actually, no you ain't,' the Clubba retorted. He clenched his fist and it glowed with darkness. He swiped his hand across horizontally and a wall of blackness suddenly shot up from the ground behind Mario and in front of the rest of them. Then he swiped it up vertically, then across again horizontally, then down vertically until they were trapped, walls on all four sides of them. 'Hyuk hyuk! Innit this just the bee's knees? Dimentio was sure kind to me.'

Mimi, Nastasia, and Blumiere suddenly clutched their heads and groaned, dropping to their knees. Fawful cried "Mimi!" and Timpani cried "Blumiere!" and everyone else who liked the three expressed their concern for all three of them.

'Mimi, what is being the problem?' Fawful demanded. All she could manage was a pained "Uungh..." and curl up into a ball, clutching her head.

'It's...the...energy...' Blumiere groaned, trying to get onto his feet but failing. 'It's...reacting with...our...uuugh...'

'With our powers!' Nastasia finished breathlessly before following suit.

Fawful sat down and put a hand to Mimi's forehead; it was feverish. All he could do was wrap his arms around her. 'It will have passing...' he assured her. 'It will have passing.' Midbus, Bowser, and O'Chunks had all begun pounding at the walls to no avail. Luigi was cowering in a corner and Kamek was trying to use magic to get out, also to no avail. He and Timpani were at the sides of the ones they loved, Timpani crying at her husband's pain, Fawful trying to maintain his composer.

'What have you done?' Mario screamed.

'Nothin' much, just gave you an' Doopliss some quality time together. Hope you enjoy. Hyuk hyuk!' He backed away.

'Alrighty slick!' Doopliss said, wicked anticipation lacing his words. 'Time to die.'

Mario

Doopliss flew right at him immediately and Mario leaped out of the way, skidding to a halt clenching his fists. Doopliss disappeared in a poof of smoke and reappeared from the ground as Luigi.

'Heh heh,' he snickered. 'It's-a me!'

'Stop mocking me!' Luigi called from inside the box.

'C'mon slick, let's-a go!'

Teeth gritted, Mario and the Luigi-imposter leapt at each other, both of them throwing a hard punch that met knuckle-to-knuckle. Both "bros." jumped back and grunted in pain, the resumed the offensive. Doopliss leaped around with speed and stamina that he knew Mario didn't possess, then leapt back at Mario to deliver a hard stomp to the head or a kick to the leg before jumping back away. Mario felt himself tiring quickly; fighting someone faster and more agile than him was trying. He stood very still, his fists at his sides. "Luigi" jumped at him from behind and Mario spun around and punched him in the jaw, sending him back a few feet. Doopliss spun in the air and landed on his feet.

'Nice shot,' he taunted, 'but not good enough.' He put his hand back. 'How about some..._thunder!_' He flung his hand forward and volts of electricity shot from his palm. Mario, not expecting this, only gave a wide-eyed look of surprise before the electricity hit his chest and brought him to the ground.

'Whoa!' Luigi said. 'I forgot I could use the Thunderhand! Wonder if it works...' He got up and pointed his palm at the wall, focussing his power. 'Thunder!' he cried. His hand sparked up for a moment, then exploded. 'WAAAH!' the green brother cried, now thoroughly black with soot.

'You...you...' Mario seethed.

'What's the matter?' Doopliss laughed. 'Don't like fighting your own brother? Fine, how about something a little different?' One poof of smoke later and Mario was looking at a replica of Bowser. 'How about the King of the Koopas! Hahahahaha!'

'GRAAAH!' the real Bowser roared. 'No one imitates me but ME!' He put more strength into his next punch to the wall, but it only made him fall over onto his back, unable to get back up.

Any other time Mario would have laughed at seeing such a silly voice come out of Bowser's mouth, but this was dire and he was angry. He was angry two villains had come back to haunt him, he was angry one was mocking his partners, and he was angry that he was being stalled. The Void was growing and they needed to get moving. He pulled out his golden Ultra Hammer and swung it around. 'Alright, now I'm serious,' he said.

"Bowser" shot plumes of fire out of his massive gullet. Mario, used to such an attack, merely jumped to the left doing a stylish flip in the air before landing, then ran a bit and jumped over the fire and onto his foe's head. 'Ack!' Doopliss yelled. 'Slow down!'

'Now you know how I felt!' the plumber retorted. He hurled his Hammer at his enemy, which met it's mark right on his face. A cry of pain escaped his mouth, but Mario wouldn't give him any rest. He jumped and flipped over, giving himself an extra boost as he sent himself up into the air with his hands, then turned back around and came crashing down on Doopliss' head. He grabbed his Hammer, flipped over behind him and smashed his Hammer into Doopliss' shelled back. Then he grabbed his tail and spun him around, letting go as he was in range of the dark box. When he hit it, it didn't break. He smashed hard into it headfirst though, giving him a lot of pain. To finish the job he took out a Thunder Rage and crushed it in his hand. 'Let's see how you deal with thunder!' He flung out his palm and a thick bolt of electricity was fired out of it. It hit its target and sent many volts of electricity coursing through Doopliss' body.

'AAAAAAAAAAAAAAUGH!' he screamed, turning back into his Duplighost self. 'It's been what, years, and you're _still_ freakishly powerful!'

And then, despite everything, the hero of the Mushroom Kingdom smiled smugly. 'Of course. I'm Super Mario.'

'Smug killjoy!' They fought once more.

Fawful

Mimi was on the ground shivering and crying as the dark energy ravaged her body. She was having small spasms and muttering things under her breath so quietly Fawful couldn't hear them. He could practically feel the pain that she was feeling. Bowser had long since stopped punching the wall and sat propped up against it but O'Chunks and Midbus were still at it, determined to get out no matter what. It didn't matter what they did though, they were getting nowhere.

'Mimi...' he muttered, a tear trickling down his cheek from her pain. 'I have...I have...' He clenched his fists and teeth and tore at his hair. 'I am not even knowing what I am having!' Everything seemed hopeless. That old man, Grubba, had been able to trap them with a wave of his hand. If _he_ could do _that_, then what could Dimentio do to them?

'Faw...' Mimi moaned. The Bean's attention returned to her. 'F-Faw...ful...help...m-me...please...'

'I...' He had really begun to cry now, his heart pounding intensely from the stress and grief. 'I am not knowing what to do! I...I...'

_'Ahahahaha.'_

He froze. He heard Dimentio's laughter inside his head as clearly as if he had been standing right beside him.

_'Isn't it just grand? Those three pathetic weaklings are having their minds driven to the point of insanity...just like _I_ did!'_

'St-stop...' the Bean muttered.

_'Soon dear Mimikins is going to be crushed under the pressure, reduced to nothing more than a live corpse!'_

He wasn't saying this. Fawful _knew_ Dimentio wasn't actually talking...but it seemed too real. The Chaos Heart was beating in his chest like a hammer against a gong.

_'Say a last goodbye, because soon all their games shall be OVER! Ahahahahahaha!'_

'GRAAAAAAAH!' Fawful jumped up and ran straight at the wall in the direction he heard the fighting from and began pounding mercilessly on it. 'FURY FURY FURY FURY FURY!' he screeched. 'I HAVE FURYYYY!'

_BA-BUMP!_

A powerful burst of dark energy raced through his body from his heart, filling his veins with sudden power. 'I...I...' Fawful grinned as his eyes glowed red. 'I have POWER!' Then, unexpectedly, he _slid through_ the wall and came out the other side. 'HAHAHAHAHAHA_**HA!**_' A wave of energy exploded from him, knocking Mario and Doopliss off their feet and nearly doing the same to Grubba.

'WHAT'N TARNATION?' the Clubba exclaimed as Fawful ran towards him. 'You get away from 'ere ya little punk!' He shot a blast of dark energy from his palm which hit Fawful in the chest. The boy held his ground though and shot his own which deflected Grubba's right back at him. He screamed as he was hit head on with the force of both attacks and hit the ground hard.

'I will have the destroying of your face, fink-rat!' Fawful screamed, preparing to turn his enemy into a smear on the ground.

Then, Grubba looked up at him...and laughed. 'Heh heh heh...well ain't that somethin'...you're a real powerhouse aren'tcha?'

Fawful glared at him. 'Flattery will not have the swaying of me!'

'HA HA HA!' Grubba chortled. 'Flattery? You think I'm flatterin' ya?' He struggled to his feet. 'You've got enough dark power sittin' in that chest'a yers than I can wave a stick at, and don't think I don't know where it comes from.' He grinned. 'In the time we've spent with the ol' jester we've been badgerin' him like no tomorrow, askin' fer powers an' abilities. So far I'm the only one he's given 'em to.' Fawful's eye bore into his, and Grubba's into Fawful's. What was he getting at? 'He'd always decline our requests, an' more than once he'd say that we'd have to be careful what we wished for because dark energy ain't somethin' ta take lightly.' He dusted himself off. 'What I'm gettin' at...is that you've got so much power in ya but no idea how to control it, an' this proves it. You just wait you little mite, you'll be the doom of all yer little friends someday, an' you aren't gonna like it one bit.'

Fawful suddenly felt like he'd been punched in the stomach. His mind reeled and he felt sick. 'Fawful will never be destroying his allies!' he shot. 'Never!'

'Ah, maybe not you, but what about that dark ticker in yer little bod, huh?' He poked his own chest. 'Hyuk hyuk! A little bit o' food fer thought.' He looked over at his companion, who was busy peeling himself off of the ground. 'C'mon Doopliss, we got some work to do.'

'But I...ugh...' He clutched his head. 'I can still f-fight...'

Grubba ignored him and grabbed him by the wrist, looking right at the scientist. 'It's Fawful innit?' He smiled. 'You'd make a swell addition to our little group, ya know.'

'Fawful...' he said, still dizzy. 'Fawful already had the trying of that.'

'Kicked out?' Grubba snorted with laughed. 'Makes sense.' He waved. 'G'bye y'all. Oh, and Gonzales!'

Mario heaved himself up. 'My name...' he huffed. 'Is Mario!'

'Mario then. Let's have another tussle again sometime...before everythin' gets obliterated n'all.' He laughed and flipped the both of them out of the dimension and the box of darkness disappeared.

All twelve of them collapsed on the ground. Blumiere, Nastasia, and Mimi were beginning to go back to normal. Mimi's shuddering was coming to a halt. Timpani cried and hugged her husband. Everyone else had eyes on Fawful...and they didn't have happy looks on their faces.

'Kid...' Kamek said, looking just as untrusting as the rest. 'I...' He shook his head. 'I've had enough awful experiences with you to know you're trouble.'

'Same here!' Bowser growled.

'He did kidnap me...' Peach muttered.

'And made life the Underwhere for me and my bro!' Luigi chimed in, angry.

Timpani looked sympathetic and Blumiere was opening his mouth to talk, then closing it. Having previous experiences with the Chaos Heart he knew how dangerous it could be. Midbus was just staring at him helplessly; Fawful knew that if he said anything in his favour they'd be just as keen on hating him as well. O'Chunks looked caught between two sides. Nastasia, still holding her head, was glaring at him viciously. Fawful sensed a deep bond between her and Mimi, and now that Nastasia had Grubba's words in her mind she probably thought he was going to do something really bad to her.

Mimi got up and was leaning on Nastasia. 'I...don't think you'll kill anyone...' She coughed. 'You wouldn't do that, right...?'

'Of coursing not!' Fawful exclaimed. 'Fawful has no reason to have any killing!'

'This is pointless,' Mario said, now steady but looking very beaten up. 'Anything Grubba says can't be trusted. All he's trying to do is turn us against each other...and it looks like it's working.'

'How do you know Fawful isn't lying?' Luigi said. 'How do you know he _doesn't_ plan to kill us?' A few other people chimed in.

'Because!' Mario said. 'If he did he'd have done it earlier.'

'Fawful is not wanting to kill anybody...' the Bean whimpered.

'I know,' Mario said. 'I've saved enough people and places to know things like that. Grubba's evil. You might have been before, but you'd have nothing to gain from killing us considering Dimentio's bent on destroying you.' He looked at Fawful with a look meant to comfort, but it didn't do anything to comfort him. 'I trust you Fawful.'

Fawful's mouth dropped, then he closed it hurriedly. 'I...' He was shocked. 'Th-thanking you...'

'Come on, we can't wait around anymore. The Void won't stop for us.' Mario turned and walked towards the entrance to the forest. Others followed. As Mimi passed him she made to go walk towards him but Nastasia pulled her away, muttering something in her ear. She sighed and nodded reluctantly, not looking at him again as the two of them followed the group into the forest.

Fawful didn't know what he felt. Mario had killed his mistress AND him, and now he was saying he trusted Fawful? It didn't make sense to him, and that only made him angry. Angry at Grubba for turning everyone against him and angry at Mario for making him feel this way. He dropped to his knees. 'FINK-RATS!' he screamed. 'YOU ARE ALL FINK-RATS! I HAVE HATREEEED!' He punched the ground again and again, cutting open his knuckles and sending pain through him, but he didn't care. He felt too much emotional pain in his heart for it to matter. Hopelessness and grief welled up in his chest and he cried for a few moments before forcing himself to stop and wipe the tears away. 'Fink-rats...' he breathed. 'I have hatred for all of you!' He could feel the Chaos Heart pumping away and pain was blossoming in his chest. He knew the black veins on his chest were growing, snaking across him, which filled him with more negative emotions.

_'Nothing you do is going to change fate Fawful,' _Dimentio's voice said to him. _'Soon...you will become like me. Darkness controlling your every action, bent on nothing but your own desires at any cost. Everyone you love and respect won't matter...you'll kill them all in the end to reach your goal. When that happens...you will know what it really means to wallow in darkness and despair. You will know what it is like...to be me.'_

Dimentio wasn't actually speaking, Fawful knew. These were emotions and thoughts Dimentio had always had buried in his heart. He may have blocked love from himself, but that didn't stop Fawful from knowing everything he had felt before that moment. They were connected...and Fawful didn't know what would become of him because of that.

He picked himself off the ground and began to walk slowly after his companions 'Darkness breeds despair...' he muttered to himself.

_'Darkness breeds despair...'_ Dimentio's voice echoed in his head.

Merlon

Merlon, Merlon, and Nolrem were still in Toad Town-Merlon's house when Nolrem suddenly reacted.

'Ugh...' he moaned, grabbing his head. 'My word, what's...' He collapsed.

'Nolrem!' his opposite cried. 'What happened?'

'Dark...energy...'

'It's Fawful isn't it?' the fortune teller said.

Nolrem looked at him. 'Yes, but...someone else has been lent power.'

'That's not good for us,' Flipside's prophet said.

'Obviously not,' Nolrem said, then groaned.

The fortune teller returned back to his crystal ball. For a while now it had been nothing but fog in its murky depths. No matter how much Merlon tried to coax out some useful information, nothing had happened. 'Odd. Normally it shows something...'

'Having trouble with your crystal?' the other Merlon asked, helping Nolrem to his feet.

'Yes,' he answered. 'It shows me absolutely nothing.'

'Nothing at all?'

'Nothing at all.' He focussed his energy into it. 'Come on, show me _something!_' A lone spark showed inside the crystal ball, then the fog began to clear. 'Ah yes, here we are!' He looked deep into it. 'Something's coming...something important...something...' His eyes widened and he drew back suddenly. 'Oh _no_...'

'What?' Both prophets demanded, looking into the crystal ball. They had the same reaction. 'No...no, that can't be...' Merlon gasped.

'If this is true...' Nolrem breathed.

What they saw in the crystal terrified them, chilling them to the bone. Every single hero was attacking a lone person relentlessly, using both magic and brute force to utterly pound him into submission. It was ten against one, the huge mass of heroes attacking with such force that it was there was absolutely no chance the victim would survive. The victim in the middle of it all was Fawful, being crushed by the force of his attackers. Every other hero was fighting him except for one: Nastasia, who had her glasses down and her eyes glowing red, commanding the heroes with her hypnosis. But the most terrifying thing of all was the mind controlling Floro Sprout that grew on her head, twitching and glowing.


	17. Chapter 17: Magic Over Mind

Chapter 17: Magic Over Mind

Esmine

Night had fallen over Castle Dimentio. Yes, it was always dark under the depressing cloak the Void cast over everything in this dimension, but one's body could tell when night came and went. You just got tired and knew sleep was necessary.

Esmine slipped out of her clothes, and donned a thin nightdress. In direct contrast to what she normally wore, this dress glowed white in the darkness of the castle, making her look like a ghost. She regarded herself in the mirror, pleased with what she saw. Night time was the only time she was able, in her tiredness, to shed the demeanour she constantly had and let go of the darkness in her heart that was always there. This darkness had only increased upon her pledge to aid Dimentio, but that didn't matter; he made her heart flutter and sent satisfying shudders of anticipation throughout her body.

Anticipation for something that would never come.

She scowled; he was the only one who had ever been immune to her powers. Whenever she encountered a man she was interested in she simply worked her magic and he couldn't get enough of her. Absolutely easy and perfect for one not looking for love, which was definitely the case for her. There was only one person she loved, only one spot in her heart for a person special enough, and he had been family as opposed to a man who had stolen her heart.

Dimentio though...that was something completely different. He comes along and completely cripples her abilities, warding them off like nothing. That made her angry and frustrated, as if she was trying to seduce a wall. She allowed herself a small smile, however; that was one of the charms that put him apart from other people she had met, she supposed.

She brushed her deep red hair out of her eyes. In this outfit she sort of looked like an angel, the flowing white dress. Her body also helped the image; it was lean and curved just where it should. The only thing that took away from it were the ruby red eyes that stared back at her. Those were the mark of a demon...a title she deserved without a doubt.

A demon...unable to save the one she loved from destruction...

She shook her head. 'Pull yourself together Esmine, how long has it been?' She didn't even want to count the many years. It didn't matter how much time passed from that day. There would always be that voice in the back of her mind...

_You don't deserve the life you have, Esmine. You failed to save him, the only person who truly mattered. Why do you go on living like this? Why do you care? Why, when you could join him so easily? You hide your suffering behind your carefully crafted demeanour, but in the end you're just a scared little child, fighting to know what to do in worlds that are too large to comprehend..._

'Stop it,' she told herself. She was going to make right all the evil in the world...no matter the cost. Dimentio had the right head on his shoulders, trying to eliminate pain, suffering, discrimination...even love. If she hadn't loved, she wouldn't feel any pain at all. She was going to stick by him. Her attraction to him went beyond physical looks. 'Even if I'll never see you again...I'll start everything over so nothing like what you went through has to happen ever again.'

She got up and walked out her bedroom door.

There was no wind, per se, in this dimension. The constant pull of the Void was sucking things in without any sign of stopping, so it created the illusion of wind as matter zoomed on by. Castle Dimentio, formerly called Castle Bleck, must have had a dark spell put on it for it and its residents to withstand the effects of being so close to the dimensional rift. All this really didn't need to be said, just that Esmine's long hair whipped about wildly and that she had given up on trying to fix it until she was safely back inside. For now, though, she stood on a path unsheltered from the Void's elements. Black globs of dimensional matter, some of which were probably living creatures once, shot past her and into the hole's depths. Esmine stared up into the Void's centre, wondering what it would be like at its core. Dark and lonely was what she came to.

She sighed. 'I wonder what's better...' she muttered. 'An eternity in the Underwhere, or absolute nothingness? I suppose no one will ever know.'

Moments passed. She knew she should go to sleep, but she wouldn't have been able to if she tried.

'A curious human,' a deep voice said, 'lost in the wonders of the Void, I see.'

Esmine turned to see that odd creature of Dimentio's walk up to her. She was amazed even still how accurate Dimentio had made the human form. Valex seemed to be completely neutral in regards to gender; the fact that he lacked any reproductive organs was a huge factor, but it was also the shape and structure of the body. No gender. The only thing that made him male was his voice, which on a female would just be creepy. 'You could say that, yeah.' She looked back to the Void.

'No charm or charisma tonight, I see.' His voice was flat and neutral for the most part, but she detected a bit of teasing in it.

'Getting better at your speech lessons Valex?' Esmine chuckled with a smirk.

'Ah, there it is.' A smile crossed his lips. 'Master hasn't taught me anything, but I believe I am becoming more...' He struggled for a word.

'Can't help you with a single word, but you don't speak like a robot anymore. Not to mention you seem to be getting emotions.'

The black and white man frowned. 'Emotions...I can only feel a few.'

'Like what?'

'Anger...confusion...anticipation. I have never felt "happiness" or "grief." I have never been "excited."'

'Do you wish you could?'

'No. I do not long for those emotions. I am content with the anger I feel towards my unintelligent inferiors. I am fine with the confusion that comes with my Master's plans. I am not bothered by the anticipation of battle.' He crossed his arms. 'Happiness and sadness would only hinder my purpose.' He sighed. 'However...I am able to extend a hand to aid those who are hindered by these emotions. To be hindered in one's purpose in life is to deprive them of what they live for.' He looked at her. 'Why do you stare into the Void's depths so?'

Esmine was surprised; Valex might not know it, but he was showing compassion. 'Nothing...just old memories.' She blinked a few times, afraid she might cry.

'Memories...of happiness? Of grief? What do you feel in your heart?' Valex was looking at her curiously, as if he was studying her. Perhaps he was. If he had never felt these things before it was only natural that he would wonder about them, even if he didn't really want to possess them himself.

Esmine was silent for a time. 'Grief,' she finally answered. 'Despair. Hatred. Loss.'

'I'm afraid I can identify with only a single emotion in that list.'

'Grief and despair are synonyms,' she red haired girl said. 'They just mean sadness. I don't need to explain loss to you.'

'You have lost someone dear to you.'

She nodded, her mouth going dry. 'My...little brother. He was killed by a...madman.'

'Do you know this madman?'

She shook her head. 'No, but it doesn't matter. He'd be dead by now anyway. It's been too long for him to still be alive.'

'The hatred you feel is for this murderer,' Valex noted.

Again, she nodded. 'Even though he's dead...I would have loved to kill him myself.' She gritted her teeth as the old rage began to build up.

There was a pause. Valex looked like he wanted to say something, so Esmine gave him a _spit it out_ look. 'Dimentio is a murderer,' he sighed.

Esmine raised an eyebrow, her anger subsided by this surprise. 'No "Master?"'

He shook his head. 'There are times when I must speak of him as my superior, and times when I must speak of him as a simple living being and not be biased.' He looked at her, his black eyes boring into her red ones. 'Dimentio has killed many, many people. Even if he is not responsible for the death of your brother, then he is responsible for the deaths of thousands of others. In his quest for the world he yearns for, away from all this pain, he has been forced to cause pain to others.'

'Why are you telling me this?' Esmine was slightly unnerved.

'Because you are not just a mindless minion. You are a being with your own thoughts of despair. Are you still willing to aid this man in his quest, despite what he has done?'

Esmine hesitated for but a moment before thinking of her brother's last moments. She nodded. 'Whatever it takes...I will see a day of peace, where no one will die at the hands of a murderer.' She took a breath. 'Even if it means helping another one. Besides,' she added, giving a sly grin. 'I'm not free of the sin of murder myself.'

'Even after what happened to your brother you would still spill blood?'

'Darkness has always been in my heart,' the woman replied. 'The death of my brother only multiplied that darkness.' Her fingers twitched and she could feel the venom on her teeth. She smiled sadistically in a way not too much unlike how Dimentio did, though it wasn't nearly as scary. 'My darkness...needs to be fed.'

'Then feed it the heroes of prophecy, and their friends.' Valex's stony stare was aimed right into the Void as Esmine's was. 'However...remember to avoid the heart of the Bean child. It would not do to damage Master's precious artefact.'

Fawful

The calm winds rustled the leaves of the forest's trees, soft rays of sunlight shining on its floor. All manner of mammals, plants, and insects scurried, flew, hopped, walked, or ate, or hunted, and there could never really be a more tranquil place than this. If you listened really closely, you could hear the sounds of the brave explorers on their way to secure the Cobalt St—

'OH MY GRAMBI I JUST STEPPED IN ANIMAL CRAP!'

...on their way to secure the Cobalt Star, whilst stepping in animal droppings.

'Naaaaaassy, it's all over my shoooee!' Mimi squealed.

'Uh, Mimi, it's no big deal, just—'

'OHMYGODITSMELLSSOBAAAAD!'

'Jus' scrape it on the ground, lass,' O'Chunk's advised. Mimi tried it. It didn't work.

'Blumieeeere! Help!'

Blumiere sighed and waved his hand, the unpleasant substance dissolving. 'And here I thought the powers of dark magic were to be used for productive reasons,' he groaned sarcastically.

'Whew!' Mimi sighed. 'Crisis averted!'

'Now be careful where you walk, K?' Nastasia irritably adjusted her glasses.

They had been wandering through the forest for most of the day and so far had encountered nothing dangerous. The creatures here seemed fairly docile, much to Fawful's amazement. Normally everything would be attacking the intruders in their home to drive them away, but he supposed they must simply be at peace with them. They weren't attacking, after all. Nobody had spoken a word to him and several people had been giving angry or distrustful glares so he had moved a fair distance in the back of the group. His eyes were staring at the ground so as to not meet anyone's gaze.

'Lord Fawful.'

The Bean boy recognized the deep, rough voice anywhere. 'Midbus.' They both spoke in whispers, trying not to attract attention. 'Are you not being ashamed of being the minion of me after I had the stares possessing much distrust and fury cast at the one who is me?'

Midbus cleared his throat uncomfortably. 'A master...and a friend,' he said. 'You have always been one. I will stand by you. Forever.'

Fawful was touched. 'Fawful never had any doubts of your loyalty!' he beamed, grinning.

'Your words of hatred,' the pig said. 'I heard them. Much cursing. Much hating. Even to me.'

Fawful suddenly turned red with embarrassment and guilt. 'I have apology.'

Midbus smiled as much as he could through his tusks. 'Forgive. Forget. I do those things.' He stared at Bowser's back, distaste on his face. 'Sometimes.'

'The Koopa who is king will not have the receiving of Fawful's apologies until he has apology to Fawful!' he whispered furiously.

'Agreed.' The two minions walked for a time in silence, listening to the sounds of nature and the chatter of the other people. 'What of her?'

Fawful looked over at Midbus. 'I have confusion. What meaning are your words possessing?'

Midbus pointed at Mimi. 'Her. Girl. Have you spoken?'

Fawful grew even redder. 'Fawful does not know what the words coming out of your mouth of piggyness are meaning! They are having much worthlessness like mouldy bread on a sandwich of disgustingness!'

Midbus' eyes narrowed. 'Worthless? No. My words have worth. You and her. Something is more. Something is stronger.' He smirked, which was a first to Fawful. 'You feel more. Friendship is too small.' He winked.

'M-Midbus!' Fawful growled. 'As your lord of much genius Fawful demands that you stop!'

Midbus chuckled, a deep, resonating sound. 'Yes, Lord Fawful.'

As a short time passed and there was nothing to talk about, Fawful had to say something. 'No, Fawful has not had the talking to her since the distrust of these fink-rats.'

Midbus chuckled again. 'Shame. You are close.'

Fawful didn't answer, but glared at Nastasia's back. She was responsible for forcing Mimi to keep her distance from him.

Suddenly, the group stopped. 'What's the hold up?' Bowser grumbled.

Mario pointed to a lone humanoid figure standing in their path. Everyone moved to get a look. 'Who're you?' The red dressed man demanded.

The humanoid was simple in design. Fairly tall, it had no hair at all and was black on one half and white on the other, just like Dimentio's mask. Its black eyes had a small white pupil in each. It seemed to be genderless as its body was completely neutral. There was no way to determine whether it was a man or a woman. At least until it spoke.

'Greetings.' Its voice was deep, which probably meant it was male. 'My name is Valex. I am captain of Master Dimentio's guard.'

'He has a guard?' Mimi asked.

'Sounds unlike him,' Blumiere added.

Valex smiled with pride and smugness. 'None of you can comprehend the army Master has created. We were all made by his hand.' He slashed his hand across the air horizontally and suddenly an small band of similar creations appeared in the same manner that Dimentio could teleport. There were all kinds; ones similar to Valex, winged ones, burrowing ones, ones with more warlike features, ones with weapons on their bodies. 'Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!' Valex laughed, which made Fawful groan. The thing's laugh was a deep, almost robotic chuckle, which just shamed all evil laughs due to its lack of creativity. 'It's time to die, Heroes of the Light Prognosticus.' He threw his hand forward and the mob attacked.

As a gigantic monstrosity of a thing leapt at him Midbus grabbed him in his huge hand and unceremoniously hurled him forward and past all the creatures, landing on his feet and having his body jolted upon impact. He heard Valex give the order to attack "the small green boy" and took that as advise to run as fast as he could. He yanked out his storage cube and released his Headgear which he put snugly on his cranium while upholstering his blaster and setting it on the recommended level for killing.

A strange, bug like creature burst out of the ground and prepared to take a bite out of his head. The Headgear immediately fired at the threat and several energy projectiles went right down its gullet, causing it to be blown to pieces. Several small, agile things sped by him and bounded off trees at him. He ducked under one but another smashed right into his chest sending both of them rolling across the ground. He fired up his rockets and shot up in the air to steady himself and shoot a bunch of energy attacks at the quick things. He got all but one, which jumped and wrapped its arms around one of his rocket supports sending them both spiralling to the forest floor. The little thing shrieked and flew right off him while he picked himself up, used his Headgear to grab the entire thing, and whip it across the forest and into a tree where it exploded into a shadowy vapour.

'YES!' he beamed. 'I have such FURY!'

His fury was short-lived as two more, taller creatures leapt out of the bushes. Their arms ended at sharp points which would be enough to impale Fawful's body in a heartbeat. Remembering the pain he had felt as Prince Peasley had stabbed him through the heart, he knew he didn't want to face that again. He shot himself high into the treetops, bounding off the branches and using his Headgear in case he fell to swing back up. The two sword-armed things gave chase, hacking and slashing thick branches right off of trees. He dipped below the higher level and swung with his Headgear, turning around midflight and firing at them with his blaster. They dodged the blasts expertly.

'Black and white fink-rats!' he spat. 'You are having annoying persistence that Fawful is greatly annoyed at!' He stood firmly on a branch, grasping the trunk with his hand. Soon, they would get close enough, then...

He took his chance and fell off backwards, gripping the branch with his hand (and ignoring the jarring pain in his arm muscle) and flipping himself around. At the same time his Headgear tore off a relatively large branch above him. Just as he'd planned the things had sailed on by. He spun around and pierced them both through the chests with the branch. They squealed in pain and bared sharp teeth. Fawful pressed a button on his cube and took out a baseball sized silver ball, pressed the button on it, and threw it. It stuck to them with a splatter as a sticky adhesive instantly coated it. Waving goodbye and grinning madly, he tipped off the branch and shut his eyes as the small bomb exploded in a ball of flame. They were no more.

He touched ground gently by aid of his rockets and laughed. 'Such toys of cheapness, they are crumbling before the might of Lord Fawful the Great! HAHAHAHAHA!'

_THUD!_

'Haha...ha...'

_THUD!_

Fawful looked up to see a huge, lumbering, black and white giant walk towards him, each step shaking the earth. 'Um...perhaps Fawful spoke too soon.' He put on a smile and walked up to it. 'Could Fawful interest you in badges of greatness?'

'BRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!' the thing roared, showing rows of dirty teeth. The wind from the cry blew Fawful's small tuft of black hair right back.

Okay. The thing was many times larger and stronger than him. It looked really tough, so the Headgear might not work. It wouldn't listen to his words. At that point, Fawful could only think of one thing he knew was absolutely foolproof:

Turn around and run away squealing like a little girl.

And that he did. He did that until he got a far away as was necessary and hid behind a tree, shivering with fear. It didn't matter what, there was nothing, absolutely nothing, in this world, in the Underwhere, in the depths of the Void...nothing would make him face that thing.

_'EEEEEKKKKK!'_

Except an endangered Mimi.

Fawful immediately jumped out from behind the tree and shot off towards the voice. The green girl was being held in the thing's massive hand, squeezing the life out of her. Her head was tilted at an impossible angle, probably from being interrupted during her True Mimi transformation. Fawful charged up a powerful blast from both his Headgear and his blaster and collided with it at full speed, letting the blasts loose. While not doing obvious damage to its body, it was knocked over backwards and Mimi flew from its hand. Fawful caught her body, expecting to gently bring her down to safety. Instead the weight of another living being caught him by surprise and both of them crashed to the ground.

'Ow!' Mimi said, snapping her neck back in its normal position. 'Not a perfect rescue, but it was still alright.' She smiled. 'Thanks.'

Fawful was staring at her, and then at the huge thing, wide-eyed. He had flown in without even doing so much as giving it a first thought, let alone a second. He was gasping for breath. 'You are...being very...welcome.'

It got back up, and this time it was in a rage. It gave a primal roar and swatted Mimi aside like a doll. The girl flew through the air and collided with a tree headfirst, knocking her unconscious. 'GRAAAH!' it roared.

'MIMI!' Fawful screamed. He had turned to look at her automatically and therefore didn't see the giant fist punch him in the gut and send him flying into a tree. Literally, Fawful's impact tore a hole right into the tree. Then the fist closed around his groggy body and brought him up to eye level. Fawful was seeing quadruple, four images of his enemy moving around before his eyes. The fist closed around him, squeezing the life out of him. The air popped out of his lungs and he thought his entire body was going to be crushed. He was going to die unless he did something dire. There was only one chance for survival. A single chance that he had used several times by accident and yet never seriously considered. He could either die right here, or he could save himself by using something more evil than anything he'd ever encountered. He took the latter. He dug deep into his soul, looking for the evil thing that rested in his body, pulsing rhythmically. He buried his entire being inside of it, enshrouding himself with power, willing it to come out. Come out. COME OUT!

A surge of dark energy completely covered his body, so much so that it actually began to spew right out his mouth. His irises turned blood red, and he gritted his teeth as his very mind shook. He screamed and an explosion of energy engulfed the small area of the forest, throwing Mimi's body through the air again and completely vaporizing his assailant. A wave of power was sent through the entire forest, shaking the trees down to their roots.

The dark energy overloaded his mind. A sudden sensation overcame him, as if he'd been hit everywhere on his head that could possibly be hit with huge hard heavy things. His mind shut down, the only thought in his head the beating of half of the Chaos Heart.

Fawful passed out.

_'Fawful...'_

He groaned. Five more minutes...

_'Faaawfuuuul...'_

He stirred a little, but remained out.

_'FAWFUL!'_

'WAUGH!' His head bolted right up and smashed right into Mario's huge round nose, sending pain through both of them. 'I have fury like many furious bottles of furious fury feeling as much fury as the furious fury I am feeling at this time furiously!' he blurted out all in one breath.

'Whoa, that's gotta be a record,' Kamek commented.

'FURY!' Fawful screamed.

'Ow...' Mario said, his voice nasally from holding his nose. 'That hurt.'

'Fink-rat!' the Bean spat. 'Be standing farther away from the one who is named Fawful next time so we may avoid pain which is not being desired by either of us!'

'You're welcome,' Mario replied sarcastically.

Fawful looked around. Not very many people were crowded around him. There was Mario, Peach, and Midbus. That was it. Everyone else, save the villains, were crowded around someone else. Bowser just sat away from it all with Kamek, who was glancing over in his direction from time to time. He heaved himself up, ignoring the pain he felt all over his body and in his head.

'Fawful,' Peach said worriedly. 'You shouldn't be up and about after what happened—'

'Make with the up-shut!' he snapped. He made his way over to the other person they were crowded around: Mimi. She was leaning against a tree looking very beaten up, with all her friends fussing over her.

'Guys, I'm OKAY!' she assured. 'I just took a...beating.'

'Mimi!' Fawful cried, shoving aside an upset O'Chunks. 'I have worry!'

A hand firmly gripped his shoulder. 'Fawful.' It was Nastasia. 'You need to go.'

Fawful glared at her. 'Fawful is not needing to do anything you are wanting him to!'

'Yes, you are,' she spat. 'Go now.'

'Nassy, it's fine, it's not like he's gonna kill me—'

'Do you really believe that after today?' She rounded on Mimi. 'You could have died today!'

'Fawful saved my life!' Mimi shot angrily. 'What would I be if he hadn't acted?'

'Why the blaming of Fawful?' the Bean asked.

'YOUR little outburst caused Mimi more pain than it prevented!'

'That's not true Nastasia!'

'ENOUGH!' It was Blumiere who had spoken. 'She's alive, and that's what's important. No arguing is going to get the Chaos Heart out of Fawful's body and so far he's been an asset to the team. I suggest we forget this incident happened because Mario's right: he's staying with us. We need him, and he has no intentions of killing anybody. Am I clear?'

'No Blumiere, you are not clear!' Nastasia replied furiously. 'I'm not putting Mimi in danger!'

'Nastasia, I care about her life as much as you do, but we need to think rationally and calmly. The Chaos Heart doesn't make the decisions for him—'

'It made the decisions for you!' Everyone, who had been actively making a ruckus, now fell silent. Blumiere held his mouth open in shock. 'You were going to kill us all if you had had your way and if it weren't for Mario and his friends we'd all be dead!'

'N-Nastasia...' Blumiere breathed. 'You aren't seriously—'

If looks could kill, the scowl Nastasia had on her face would have killed Blumiere many times over. 'Yes I am.'

Blumiere put on a stern face. 'He's staying. We're all going to be safe, even with the Chaos Heart amongst us.' He looked at Nastasia with a look that he most likely used as Count Bleck the years before that said: _I have spoken. _'Now, enough of this mindless arguing.'

Nastasia's eyes shot daggers at the man she loved. The man she would never, ever have. It pained her, but she cared for Mimi far too much for it to matter enough. She sighed and adjusted her glasses, assuming a business-like pose. 'As you wish...my Count.' Leaving Blumiere shocked once more, she walked away.

Mimi looked at Fawful apologetically. 'I'm sorry about her, Fawful,' she said. 'She's just...looking out for me.'

The Bean shook his head. 'No...I have apology. I will...have distance. From all of you.' He walked away from them all, ignoring Mimi's cries to him. He wouldn't leave the group, that would doom him...but he was going to make sure he didn't interact with them.

Night had fallen over the forest. Fawful stared up through the holes in the leaves, looking at the sparkling white stars shining up in space. Oh to be a star...to be free of worry. What he wouldn't give right now to be a star and shine his light on the rest of them. At least he wouldn't spend the time wondering how many heartbeats it was going to take before he lost control of his powers.

He sighed; things were so much easier before he died the first time.

Someone nudged his shoulder and he turned to see the face of Nastasia. 'Fawful,' she whispered.

Fawful frowned. 'What?'

'Take a walk with me. I want to talk with you.'

He hesitated, then reluctantly got up and started walking with her. She had a strange look on her face, as if she was trying to bear the weight of many sins. 'Um...how is you?' he asked her.

'Hm?' She shook her head. 'I'm...fine.' She stared straight ahead as she walked, a distant look in her eyes. 'Just...preparing myself.'

'"Preparing?" What requires preparation?'

'Just...' She sighed. 'Something to help us win against Dimentio.'

'Oh.' He smiled. 'Well, let us be hoping your something is succeeding, yes?'

Nastasia laughed. 'Yeah. It'll work. Never failed before.' She suddenly stopped and turned to look at Fawful. Fawful did the same. 'I just want to...apologize to you Fawful.' She fidgeted, obviously unused to this. 'I've been acting kind of...nasty to you.' Fawful was wondering why she was nervous. It was just an apology. Her business-like tone had been thrown away; now it was as if she didn't know what words to say. 'I...I care for Mimi like a sister. We've been together for a long time, and I just don't want anything to happen to her. I worry. It's not that I don't respect or like you, I'm just...worried something's going to happen to Mimi.'

Fawful gave a comforting smile, trying to hide his surprise. 'Do not worry, I have forgiveness.'

'How much forgiveness?'

Fawful frowned. That was a weird question. 'Er...much forgiveness, for his allies.'

'That's good...' Nastasia truly looked sorry now. 'Then I hope you'll forgive me for this.'

In a flash Nastasia had lowered her glasses and he was trapped under the power of her hypnosis. His breath caught in his throat as more layers of strength were added and added and soon he could barely even twitch. 'H...huh...?' He only just gasped out the word. 'Wh...hu...n-no...'

'I'm sorry Fawful...' she said, looking more guilty than he had ever seen her. 'Nothing personal. I'm just looking out for her.' The Bean boy couldn't believe it; she was betraying him! _'Now...'_ Her words hummed through the air. _'I want you...to kill yourself.'_

Fawful's heart leaped ten stories even as his hand moved to grab his blaster. 'N-no...tr...traitor...' He gritted his teeth. 'TRAITOR!' he managed to scream.

_'Kill yourself now Fawful. End it all.'_ More layers were suddenly added and his hand shot up and placed the barrel of the blaster under his chin. He felt his other one turn the setting to maximum and heard the sound of the blaster charging. He had absolutely no control over his body. He was going to die. _'Goodbye Fawful...and forgive me.'_

Suddenly, all fear vanished. All sadness, all pain. He wasn't afraid anymore; he was angry. An anger that started right in his quickly beating heart spread across his body like a wildfire. He glared at her with intensity and clenched his fists. 'I...' he breathed. 'Have...FURY!'

A blast of dark magic pulsed through him and flew out of his body, instantly shattering the hypnotic bonds spinning around him like cheap glass. Their shards remained suspended for a moment, then dissipated. Nastasia's eyes widened and she fell back onto the ground before quickly picking herself up and put her glasses down for another attempt.

'Traitor!' Fawful screamed. He put his hand forward and felt power surge down his arm and out his palm, hitting Nastasia's right hand. She screamed out in pain and fell back, hitting her head against a tree. Her glasses flew right off her face and landed, cracked, on the ground. Without hesitation Fawful held the blaster, still set to maximum and humming with energy, aimed at her chest. Her sharp yellow eyes were wide with terror and shock. As Fawful looked at his former ally, he thought of sparing her and warning her never to do anything of the sort again.

_'No Fawful...' _a voice in his head said. It was small, but evil and resonated with power beyond his comprehension: the Chaos Heart was speaking to him. _'She tried to kill you...she deserves to have her life snuffed out without thought. Kill her...'_ With each beat of his heart the evil thoughts consumed his mind evermore. Yes...he didn't deserve life. Traitors deserved to die at his hands. Traitors didn't belong in this world!

'Those who betray Lord Fawful...' he said to her, very slowly. After a moment's pause, he smiled wickedly and widely, his huge white teeth glinting in the moonlight. '_DIE!_'

As he pulled the trigger, a girl's voice sounded from behind him. 'FAWFUL NO!'

A brilliant beam of plasma energy was shot from his blaster's end, racing through the air and shining a million colours at once. The girl screamed at the top of her lungs as the beam hit its target and blew a hole right through Nastasia's heart, the wound cauterizing her insides instantly and her searing hot organs exploded with a bloody splatter all over the tree behind her. The secretary's corpse hit the tree and slowly slid down it until it fell over onto the ground, leaving a trail of blood down the tree trunk.

Fawful stood there, the scream instantly snapping him out of his trance. He looked in horror at the cadaver he had just made, eyes wide. He heard a satisfied chuckle in his mind and the Chaos Heart fell silent. Shaking, he dropped the gun and slowly turned around. Every single person he had travelled with, save Nastasia, was looking at him in horror, anger, or grief. It didn't matter how bad the looks were though, nothing could make Fawful want to tear out his own heart more than the look on Mimi's face. It was a mixture of horrified shock, extreme sadness, heart wrenching betrayal, and enraged hatred. She seemed to be struggling to find the right words to express what she was feeling, but the only sounds that came out of her mouth were verbal versions of all her emotions, not actual words. Tears streaked down her face. Fawful wanted to apologize to her. He wanted to sink to his knees and beg to her to forgive him. He wanted to pray to every god there was and let it be known that this was a huge, awful mistake. But he knew beyond a doubt that there was no good end to this. His heart was pounding and hurt so much that he could actually literally feel physical pain in his chest. His throat seemed closed and he couldn't breathe, his lips were dry and he shook uncontrollably. Everything he had tried to do to help them was for naught. He was a traitor. He had killed Nastasia. There was no turning back.

Mimi had sorted out her emotions and pure hatred exploded across her face. 'YOU TRAITOR!' she screamed. 'YOU GOOD FOR NOTHING, MURDERING TRAITOR!'

Fawful turned and ran, thinking he wouldn't get far before he was devoured by a giant spider.

It never happened.

Merlon

Merlon of Toad Town was staring into his crystal ball even still as the image of Fawful being gang beaten was still playing. He couldn't tear his eyes away from it, he just continued staring on in horror. 'We are doomed...' he muttered for the umpteenth time. 'Dimentio will be victorious...the Void will swallow all...' He had given up trying to think positively hours ago; there was no denying it. They were going to lose.

Suddenly, the crystal ball's image disappeared. 'What?' Merlon exclaimed. 'What happened?' He tried to conjure up the image again, but it didn't work. Well...it half worked. The half that didn't work was that he couldn't conjure up that image of the future again. The half that DID work...was that he conjured up a different one. A perfectly normal image of the group walking, the Cobalt Star held in Mario's hands like a fragile diamond. The only person missing was Nastasia. 'The future...changed? What in the world could have happened?'

'AAAAHHHH!'

Merlon jumped out of his seat and raced into the room Merlon (from Flipside) and Nolrem were in. 'What's going on, what happened?' he cried.

Merlon was laying on the ground, his hands over his face. 'Th-th-the L-Light Prognosticus...i-it...'

'It what?'

'It hurt him,' Nolrem answered. 'It blasted light energy in his face.'

Flipside's Merlon picked himself up off the ground. 'N-nothing too bad...' He was hiding his face behind his cloak more so than usual. 'Only a few burns.'

'A few burns? Merlon suspected it was far more than that. 'Grambi above man, we must heal you!' Toad Town's Merlon said, trying to bring him to the next room.

'Don't fret Merlon, don't fret! The Light Prognosticus is what requires attention right now!' He picked up the book and looked at the prophetic page. His eyes widened in shock for a moment. After that moment, though they couldn't really see it, they could tell his mouth spread into a wide grin.

'What? What happened?' Nolrem asked.

'The prophecy...changed.' the prophet answered.

'What?' Toad Town Merlon asked.

'The prophecy has changed!' Flipside Merlon exclaimed happily. 'And our odds have improved so greatly! Ha ha ha ha! Thank you Grambi, THANK YOU!' He showed them the book. Soon all three Merlons were smiling widely and rejoicing in their own way.

_While the book of darkness shall be proven false and the Dark One shall be killed, he shall rise again from the land of souls to wreak havoc among the living. He shall seek the aid of a Child of Beans, and the Chaos Heart shall come again, opening the Void, but in the end, the Chaos Heart shall choose two vessels in which to store its power: The Dark One and the Child of Beans. The Heroes, joined by the Child of Beans, shall bring to life the Purity Heart and the Void shall close. However, before the end of the great battle, the Heroes will know one fact above all:_

_Darkness breeds despair._

The three Merlons were too relieved by this change of fate to read deeply enough into that last sentence.

Dimentio

Dimentio stared at Nastasia's dead, bloody body, cloaked in invisibility, the Floro Seed that King Croacus IV had given him in his palm. His everlasting grin twitched in disbelief as he tried to process two things: 1) Nastasia, his key to killing Fawful and having the whole Chaos Heart, was dead, and 2) Fawful had been the one to kill _using_ the Chaos Heart's powers. With anger building up inside him, he fought back laughing in disbelief and crushed the Seed between his fingers.


	18. Chapter 18: Mourning

Chapter 18: Mourning

Mimi

Mimi slept. She was in a calm, peaceful, dreamless sleep. Her mind floated in a blissful nothingness that was all around her like a blanket. Her head rested on her hands and her mouth was put in a calm smile. The stress from the past day was lost behind her. Nothing could disturb her slumber.

Suddenly, her slumber was disturbed.

A huge shockwave of energy blasted through the camp and threw everyone up in the air. Mimi's dream state was shattered instantly and she screamed before hitting the ground. Everyone else did the same.

'Mama mia,' Mario groaned. 'What the heck was that?'

Blumiere heaved himself up off the ground with his sceptre, a look of horrible recognition on his face. 'Blumiere?' Timpani whispered, scared. 'What's wrong?'

'That was...' He shuddered. 'That was the Chaos Heart.'

Mimi's eyes widened and her heart rose in her chest. 'Fawful?' she cried out. 'Fawful, where are you? FAWFUL?' He wasn't here.

'Nastasia's not 'ere either!' O'Chunks gasped.

'WHICH WAY?' Mimi yelled at Blumiere.

He wearily pointed in the direction he had sensed the power from. 'That way.'

Mimi was off in a flash, tearing through the high bushes off of the path and ducking under trees, moving as fast as possible, the rest of them joining her in her chase. She had to get to them before something terrible happened. As she burst into the clearing she saw to her horror that Fawful had Nastasia pinned up against a tree, pointing his blaster at her chest.

'FAWFUL NO!' she screamed _just_ as Fawful pulled the trigger. There was nothing stopping it now as a brilliant beam of light shot out of his blaster and tore right through Nastasia's chest and blew her insides out her back.

Mimi's heart seemed to stop pounding altogether. Her body suddenly became cold and numb, as if she was instantly put into a freezer. As if she were dead. Her eyes widened and she screamed, but no sound came out of her throat. Fawful froze on the spot and dropped his blaster, turning around slowly to look at the group that had gathered. Mimi couldn't even tell what emotions she was feeling at this time; every single one seemed to be trying to claw their way out of her at the same time, so she got a maelstrom of grief, rage, hatred, shock, disbelief, betrayal, and loss all at once. She couldn't speak, she couldn't breathe. She choked out unintelligible sounds, her mouth unable to form words. She decided that her mind must be going on her, because there was no way in the Underwhere this could possibly be happening. She looked at Nastasia's dead body and then at Fawful's hopeless face then back at Nastasia.

It was definitely happening.

Rage was the emotion that squeezed through the gap, exploding through her like Fawful's shockwave. Pure hatred dominated her voice as she screamed at him. 'YOU TRAITOR!' she cried, tears streaming down her face. 'YOU GOOD FOR NOTHING, MURDERING TRAITOR!' Everything she knew had been flipped over. The one who she had thought was her greatest friend had just killed the one she loved like a sister, the one who had been there for her through every hardship and failure she had faced under Count Bleck's orders. Her heart had broken in two. As she looked at the Bean, standing there and looking like the world's woes had just been dropped on his head, all she wanted to do was get to him and tear him apart, one limb at a time.

Without a sound, the traitorous worm spun around and ran out of the clearing, leaving his still smoking blaster laying on the ground. Mimi screamed and ran right after him. She didn't get far before a familiar pair of gloved hands gripped her shoulders tightly, stopping her in her tracks. 'NO!' she wailed. 'NO NO NO NO NO! LET ME GO! I'LL KILL HIM! I'LL RIP HIM TO PIECES! LET ME GO NOW! LET ME G-go...please...let me...' Her body went limp as her anger let out enough to allow the rest of her emotions to come out. A horrible, gripping despair flooded her body and she wept openly, mourning the loss of a friend who might as well have been a member of her family. Her quiet crying soon escalated into heartbreaking wails that echoed through the forest. 'She's gone!' she sobbed. 'Nassy's gone and she's never ever coming back and it's all his fault! Wh-why did this have to happen? WHY?' She sank to her knees and covered her face with her hands, her sorrow only increasing, along with the volume and intensity of her crying. She felt someone hold her close, the warmth and care he gave off only belonging to one possible person:

'Mimi...' Lord Blumiere whispered into her ear. That was all that needed to be said for Mimi to attempt to stop crying. She wiped her tears away, sniffing and holding in more sobs. She would do it for him.

'B-Blumiere...he...she...' She hiccupped and sucked in her breath before continuing. 'She's...dead...'

Blumiere's hands tightened around her shoulders and she felt a tear drop down onto her shoulder. 'Mimi...' he said again. 'Nobody is around to bother us, so I want to say something to you.'

Mimi sniffed again and tried to look over her shoulder at the man. 'What do you mean?'

'I want to confide in you my thoughts, emotions, and feelings...you are the one who needs to hear them the most right now.' Mimi remained silent, waiting for him to start. She silently wondered what he was going to tell her. 'Do you know what I am, Mimi?'

Mimi thought for a moment. 'You're not human,' she answered. 'But...you're a friend to me, O'Chunks, and...and Nastasia.' She shuddered and more tears fell from her eyes. 'You're Timpani's husband, and a great one at that...you're our ally. You helped us a lot.' She waited and he didn't answer. 'Is...that right?'

Blumiere sighed and Mimi felt a few more tears. 'No Mimi...none of that is correct...'

The girl was suddenly afraid and sad and she didn't know why. 'What are you talking about?'

'I'm none of those things Mimi...or at least I don't deserve to be them. In reality...I'm nothing more than a monster.'

Her eyes widened and she spun her head 180 degrees to look at him. His bright yellow eyes were filled with tears and he had taken off his monocle and put it in his suit pocket. 'You're not a monster!' she cried. 'How can you say that?'

'I _am_,' he insisted. 'I'm a monster and a murderer. I've killed millions of people Mimi...millions. My family...my friends...I was going to kill you as well, and O'Chunks, and Nastasia, as well as the hundreds of trillions of people that exist in all worlds. You were all going to be killed at my hands...I don't deserve your friendship or respect. I don't deserve to mourn Nastasia's death...I would have killed her if I had had my way.'

Mimi's heart caught in her throat and she found herself crying again. 'That's not true!' she sobbed. 'You can't say that, you weren't yourself!'

'Count Bleck or Lord Blumiere, what difference does it make? I should be held accountable—'

'No, you shouldn't!' Mimi interrupted. 'You're a great person, and you were under the control of the Chaos Heart and the Dark...book. You can't beat yourself up like this.'

Blumiere seemed to stare right through her, ignoring her statements. 'And you...' he whispered. 'You're a monster too...aren't you?'

Mimi's body seized up immediately, her eyes as wide as saucers. The only two people she ever confided in regarding her past were Blumiere (who was Count Bleck at the time) and Nastasia. She told both of them how she was created by some sort of witch and how she didn't remember anything for a long time and then woke up in another dimension. A run down dimension with absolutely no good in it. It was horrible. Now one of them was dead and the other was making her feel evil about it. 'I'm...I'm not...' She couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence.

'You've probably killed many people, spilled blood out on the streets, not caring who or what you destroyed. You're a murderer too...just like me...'

Rage built up in her again. She spun her body around and slapped Blumiere across the face. 'I am NOT a monster!' she yelled. 'I was being controlled! How in the worlds can you blame me for that? I would never have killed anyone if I had been able to stop myself but I wasn't! I'm not a monster and neither are you, now shut up!' She was on her feet now, practically screaming at the man. Nobody else seemed to notice and just looked at the floor.

Blumiere stood up and wiped the tears from his eyes. 'Fawful ran away,' he simply said.

Mimi tightened her fists. 'I want to kill him...' she said through clenched teeth.

'Of course,' the blue skinned man said. 'It's only natural after what he has done.' He leaned forward on his sceptre, the jewelled top digging into the dirt yet still maintaining its magnificent shine. 'He committed the heinous sin of murder. Nothing can excuse one for that.'

Mimi was about to protest, knowing he was trying to defend his point about he and her. Nothing would convince her of their guilt. Fawful was another story. Blumiere waved her off and she immediately turned around and ran after him. Her boiling rage fuelled every footstep, every moment of the mad dash she took. All she could think of was avenging Nastasia. Nothing would stop her, and nothing could excuse Fawful from his crimes. She and Blumiere were being controlled. Her by Dimentio and Blumiere by the Chaos—

She stopped in her tracks, realizing what Blumiere had been trying to indirectly tell her. 'The...Chaos Heart...' Mimi breathed. She remembered Fawful's random outburst at the lake the one time. She remembered the pulsating half-heart on his chest and the thick, black veins snaking across his body. Suddenly her rage melted away and she sank to her knees. Fawful was also being controlled by the Chaos Heart, and he wasn't even a member of the Tribe of Darkness, who were by birth connected to the kind of energy it gave off. To hold Fawful accountable would be hypocritical, not to mention she would have to hold herself and Blumiere accountable for their murdering. This realization pit against her sadness at losing Nastasia made her unsure of what to do. She groaned and hung her head. 'What do I do...?'

The bushes rustled as Blumiere walked over to her. 'I see you've made sense of my words, Mimi,' he said. Mimi just nodded. 'Forgive me for my choice of explanation. I saw no other way to make you understand.'

'Well...it worked.' Mimi felt horrible; she had lost two friends today. 'What do I do?' She got up and turned to face the dark tribesman. 'I...I'm so...'

Blumiere put a hand on her forehead. 'Don't despair.' He smiled. 'The gods' greatest gift of all is that of forgiveness.'

'But he killed Nastasia! How can I forgive him for that?'

Blumiere's smile only faltered for a second. 'Have you forgiven me for my crimes?'

'Yes,' she answered even before he was finished talking.

'Nastasia was a great friend to me. She was not killed by Fawful, the Bean boy that we know. She was killed by a force with a power greater than we can comprehend. A force with the power to wipe out all of existence.'

'The Chaos Heart.' The pit in Mimi's stomach was beginning to disappear as she had her mind sorted out.

'Yes. The Chaos Heart.' He looked ahead where Fawful had ran. 'The second half is away from us. If saving your friend's life from Dimentio is not enough to convince you to find him and bring him back with open arms, then keeping the rest of the Chaos Heart away from its creator should be.' When she still looked forlorn, he had to give one last push. 'He loves you Mimi. He would never willingly do anything to hurt you, and that includes killing Nastasia. He is a victim of fate and of the darkness he harbours inside of his body.' He put both hands on her shoulders and Mimi felt tears spring to her eyes as she knew she had to forgive her friend. 'Save him Mimi. You have to save him...from everything he suffers from.'

Mimi nodded and ran. Before she really gave chase, however, she hid behind a tree and listened. She heard Blumiere's voice faintly, but it was enough.

'Nastasia...' he sighed. 'You didn't deserve this. Death should not have taken you...' When she heard nothing she peered out behind the tree. The former count had his fists clenched and was tugging at his top hat. Without warning he tore it off his head and threw it on the ground, giving a howl of sorrow from the deepest depths of his heart. The life all around him suddenly died, shrivelled up, lost all colour. Everything in Blumiere's presence just lost its energy; the man's sorrow alone was painful enough to kill.

Mimi ran after her friend, crying on behalf of all who had suffered from this loss.

Fawful

The Bean had suffered many gashes and scrapes in his many collisions with trees and branches and from falling face first onto the ground. He hadn't stopped running, even after he was convinced he would be safe and his head hadn't been brutally bitten off or his body punctured with Rubees. A dark substance was oozing out of his body and sealing his wounds. One of the pros about being a vessel for an artefact of darkness.

Fawful lost his balance and fell face first onto the ground again, his glasses ramming into his face, a deep crack going down one of the lenses. The substance was already moving up his body to mend his eyewear. He was tired. He was dead tired. He couldn't even move further he was so tired. His body ached from his injuries, cramps, and general physical exertion. He sat propped up against a tree, breathing heavily and trying to stop his tears. The only other time he had cried this much was when he'd seen Bowser's flying castle explode...with Cackletta right inside it.

His body fell down the tree and lay on the ground. He didn't bother getting back up. He couldn't move anymore. He just laid there, knowing full well he'd be killed at any moment. He just couldn't do anymore. He closed his eyes to rest. Perhaps curling up in an Underwhere pit would be better than everything he'd had to face. Especially the Chaos Heart. He felt hopeless and alone, without a friend in the world. It was like every person he grew to like was taken from him somehow. It wasn't fair.

'I have despair...' he muttered.

Without warning, a pair of small hands grabbed his waist and yanked him to his feet.

Fawful screamed out in fear and just about fell over. One of the hands clamped around his mouth and he opened his eyes to see Mimi's staring back into his. This was it, he was dead. She was going to kill him and everything was going to be over.

Nothing happened. Fawful's heart was still pounding but he stopped making noise. Mimi's eyes stared right into his and he couldn't read her emotions. She removed her hand from his mouth and put in on his other shoulder. She seemed to be trying to keep something in check. Slowly, she unhooked the thin golden chain from one of his big golden buttons and let his cloak fall to the floor. Fawful frowned, confused. Then she began to undo his shirt. Chills racked his body.

'What—'

Her head snapped up and glared at him. 'Shush.' It was a calm command. Fawful shushed. She undid it the rest of the way and took it off of him, sleeves and all. It fell to the floor on top of his cloak. He forced himself to stay calm, but he didn't know what she was doing. She looked down at his chest; he looked down too. The half of the Chaos Heart was still beating in time with his heartbeats, sending the dark pulses through the black veins snaking across his front. The veins themselves had grown quite a bit, the outbursts of energy no doubt helping. Mimi rested her hand on the half-heart, closing her eyes and making a pained expression for a moment. As she did Fawful felt a spark travel between his heart and her hand. She closed her hand into a fist and drew it away. When she opened it black sparks danced from her palm.

'It's...powerful, isn't it?' she breathed ever so quietly. Fawful nodded.

'I have apology...' Fawful sighed.

Mimi looked into his eyes again. Slowly putting out her hands she gently took Fawful's glasses off his face. Mimi's features blurred, but he could still make her out somewhat.

'Your eyes are red,' she said. Fawful thought for a horrifying moment that he still showed effects of the Chaos Heart. 'Have you been crying?'

Fawful exhaled, relieved. He nodded. He didn't need to ask Mimi that as it was plain as day that she had. It didn't matter to Fawful though; they still looked as good as normal to him. She looked wonderful in the moonlight that trickled through the treetops, illuminating the two of them. He was still afraid that she was going to hurt him for what he did.

'Fury...?' he asked her simply. She shook her head. 'But Nasta—'

The green girl put two fingers on his lips, silencing him. The other hand traced his heart. 'You aren't the murderer,' she whispered. Fawful understood her and all anxiety vanished. Her hands moved up and closed around his. Tears had begun to form in Mimi's eyes. 'I don't want to lose another friend.'

'I still have apology.'

'I do too. I should have remembered...'

The two just stood there, looking into each other's eyes. Seeing the forgiveness and determination in her red eyes made a new determination well up inside of him as well. 'I will have the fixing,' he said firmly.

Mimi looked at him, confused. 'What do you mean?'

'Nastasia will come back,' he answered. 'I will have the reviving of her.'

'Fawful, she's...she's dead. She can't come back anymore...'

Without a word Fawful pulled out his Spacial Matter Scrambling Device and pressed a button on it, revealing holographic projections of everything stored inside of it (save the Ultra Shrooms he had stolen). 'I had the inventing of all of this. She will have revival.' He put it away. The projections vanished.

Mimi smiled. 'You're overestimating yourself.'

Fawful smiled too. 'If I cannot have the repaying...then I will sooner have death.'

Mimi stopped smiling and tears began to well up, yet she didn't look unhappy. 'Fawful...I want to tell you something.' Fawful waited. 'I want to tell you...that you don't have to be alone. I'm going to save you from this thing.' She tapped the heart. 'I'm going to be there for you. You'll never be alone...not with us.'

Fawful felt tears of relief like he'd never felt before fall down his cheeks. 'Thank you.'

Then, Mimi leaned forward and gave him a quick peck on the lips. In that second, a buzz travelled through his entire body, heating him to the core and filling him with sudden happiness. He had a surprised look on his face. 'We should go now.' Mimi motioned down the way they had come.

Fawful nodded, feeling crestfallen as the feeling retreated.

When they entered the camp everyone was still grieving over Nastasia's death. Even Bowser, Midbus, and Kamek seemed shaken by the death of one of their allies. Fawful had his shirt and cloak on normally. He was replaying Mimi's quick kiss over and over again in his mind, remembering the feeling, wishing over and over that it would happen again. He felt so cold now compared to that moment, despite it being a relatively warm night.

Blumiere came up to him. 'So, Fawful,' he said in a hushed tone. 'Mimi found you.' Fawful nodded. 'I'm glad you're okay.'

'I have apology...' the Bean muttered.

Blumiere's expression saddened. 'We're all sorry for her death, in one way or another. They've come to grips on your...situation. I hope things aren't going to be too hard on you.' Fawful nodded and gave his thanks.

'Fawful.' Mario came over to him. 'We've...well, we haven't exactly gotten over this, but we've decided your side of the story needs to be heard.' Everyone began to crowd around. 'We want to know what happened between you and Nastasia.'

And so, he told them absolutely every single detail, leaving nothing untouched. The attempt at his life, how the Chaos Heart helped him break free of the mind control, and how it then prompted him to return the attack and eventually kill Nastasia. Everyone was quiet. 'She...she tried to kill you?' Mimi cried. Fawful nodded. 'That's...she...'

'So...Nastasia was betraying us all...' Blumiere sighed.

Fawful shook his head. 'No. Just Fawful.'

'Self defence then,' Mario said. 'That changes things a lot, doesn't it? What you're saying is that had Nastasia not tried to kill you, she would be perfectly alive at this very moment?' Fawful nodded. The plumber straightened his cap. 'That's it. There's your perfectly good, excusable reason.' Cries of protest went up, but Mario stopped them. 'We need him. He has the Chaos Heart inside of him, and even though that might be frightening to think of it in our midst, it's definitely better than having it in Dimentio's hands. Just don't be a traitor and you'll be fine. That goes whether or not the Chaos Heart is in anyone.' Everyone nodded their agreement. 'Now we need to rest. All of you should go to bed.' He put on as good a smile as he could considering the circumstances. Fawful was amazed at how he could do that considering someone was dead. Mario seemed near emotionless in the face of pure evil the likes of nothing anyone had ever seen. He had battled enormous Koopas, huge frogs, terrifying monsters, a robotic blacksmith, an ancient demon, the destroyer of all worlds, a powerful Bean witch, an alien army, and Fawful himself, all without hesitation. Whenever Fawful had fought him he had never seen a single bit of fear in the older brother's eyes. It was amazing how he could just shrug off something like the death of an ally and still be fit to command. It also seemed eerily inhuman. 'Goodnight to you all.'

Mario

As Mario walked off, Luigi caught his arm. 'You're taking this well,' he whispered. 'I mean, Nastasia died and you seem really...well, unfazed.'

Mario looked into his brothers eyes and, making sure he was unnoticed by all but him, allowed the weakness and grief seep into him visibly. Luigi's mouth dropped open; it was as if his brother had suddenly had decades put on to him. He looked far older than he really was, which was somewhere in his late 30s. 'I've had to deal with a lot in the many years I've lived in the Mushroom Kingdom, Bro.' He sighed heavily. 'But...I've never had a friend die. I feel so...so helpless. I've failed, Luigi. I vowed to myself that nothing like this would ever happen, that I would never have a death on my hands.'

'You couldn't help it.'

'I _could_ though! I could have saved her!'

'Mario.' Luigi put his hands on his brother's shoulders. 'There are some things you need to live with. In this crazy world it's a wonder we haven't seen a million people die. We're only men Mario. We can't do everything.'

Mario sighed. 'I guess you're right...but I still feel horrible, especially when I have to mask all my feelings. I can't let them see that their leader's so down. I need to be strong.' He clenched his fists. 'I need to protect everything in this kingdom Luigi. I need to be as Super as they've made me.'

Luigi smiled. 'Don't worry. We're the Super Mario _Brothers_ remember? Super Luigi's gonna fight by your side every step of the way.'

The older brother smiled too, the stress leaving him. 'You're right. The most we can do is make sure no one else gets hurt.'

Luigi nodded and gave him a thumbs up. 'That's my bro!' He took off his green cap. 'Well, I should go now. Have a good night Mario.'

When he was a good enough distance away Mario's smile vanished and turned into a sad frown. Nastasia didn't have to die. He was going to make sure her death was avenged by deleting the Chaos Heart from existence and crushing Dimentio beneath his boot. No more people would die. If he let that happen...he couldn't call himself a hero.


	19. Chapter 19: Triple Battle

Chapter 19: Triple Battle

Dimentio

'What do you mean you _lost?_'

The Charming Magician wasn't looking all that charming at this point. Despite still grinning like a sadistic evil magician with a lust for power and destruction should, it was obvious he was livid even behind his mask. 'Well, er, ya see, Dimentio uh, sir, we kinda had a mite of a problem—' Grubba began.

'It was his fault!' Doopliss shot. 'He's the one who made that dark box thing!'

''Ey now, don't go pointin' fingers! I coulda put on a harder fight than that sleepin'!'

Esmine snickered from her pillar. 'The both of them, squabbling like children.' She raised her voice. 'Oh boys!' The two looked up and she gave a smile. 'I don't like it when men fight over such things.' Her eyes shone again with that magical brilliance. 'Could you stop, pretty please?' The two practically melted where they stood, muttering apologies.

'Thank you Esmine, that is very much appreciated.' He turned to look at Valex. 'And what of you, my creation? What is your excuse?'

Valex fidgeted a moment, knowing that his master's wrath wasn't one to be underestimated. He bowed his head. 'The Heroes were more powerful than expected. We were driven off or killed.' He sighed. 'I have no excuses.'

'Good. Admitting your failure as your own is the first step to preventing the same from happening twice.' He sent his gaze to all of them. 'I hope in the future you won't disappoint me again.'

'Ah, Dimentio?' Esmine called. 'What're we doing about them now? They're going to find the Cobalt Star soon if we don't hurry.'

'Don't you worry, we'll intercept them at the end of the forest.' He turned to the minions again. 'Grubba and Doopliss, do as I just said. Meet them outside the forest and wait for me there.' They nodded, both stealing dreamy glances at Esmine before they left. 'They certainly have taken to you rather quickly, haven't they?' Dimentio chuckled.

The red haired girl shrugged. She was wearing a sleeveless black shirt and small skirt, decorated with white lace. Long-sleeved black gloves covered her hands and she had black high-heels on. 'It'll wear off in seconds in that other dimension. Unless I'm there it doesn't work.'

'Ah, I see.' Esmine opened her mouth to say something but the mage cut her off. 'No Esmine I will not partake in any appalling activities with you, save your breath.'

She closed her mouth and crossed her arms. 'Who said they were appalling? They aren't appalling.'

'To you, of course not. But to one such as I...' He teleported right in front of her, his face very close to hers. 'I have no desire for such things, my dear. You should get them out of your pretty little head. Ahahaha.' He patted her cheek.

Without a word Esmine grabbed his head tightly and yanked his face forward, leaning in for a kiss. Before her lips made contact Dimentio had already teleported behind her. 'Not fair!' she huffed.

'Ahahahaha~.' Dimentio leaned on her shoulder, wagging his finger. 'Try try again, my dear.' He teleported to the floor of the room. 'I have something to attend to before departing the castle, so you'll have to make idle chatter with Valex's crew again.'

'They can't even speak!' Esmine retorted.

Dimentio shrugged. 'Or you could vent your tension by your own hands. I'm sure you'd much prefer that alternative.' All he got from her was a "Hmph." He looked up and waved. 'Ta ta, and ciao!'

In a flash he was in his bedroom. The Dimension D-styled walls brought him back to his days under Count Bleck's hospitality. Despite the contempt he harboured towards the minions, he rather enjoyed some of the time spent. Even with a loveless heart he could remember the good times.

'Now,' he said, floating over to his dresser. 'Let me see what the good Prognosticus has to offer...' Taking the dark book from his drawer he opened it to the prophetic page to find, as he suspected, a new prophecy.

_While the book of darkness shall be proven false and the Dark One shall be killed, he shall rise again from the land of souls to wreak havoc among the living. He shall seek the aid of a Child of Beans, and the Chaos Heart shall come again, opening the Void, but in the end, the Chaos Heart shall choose two vessels in which to store its power: The Dark One and the Child of Beans. The Child of Beans will aid the Heroes in their quest to seal the Void, but all shall be for naught: the Dark One shall defeat them and the Void shall swallow all. However, despite his victory, the Dark One will learn one fact before the end of his trials:_

_Darkness breeds despair._

Dimentio frowned. It still seemed to point in his favour...but this was far more prophetic than the first one. That line at the end disturbed him. He did agree with it; when things were bleak you couldn't help but despair in the situation, but...how could it apply to him? The only times that had happened were when Rosabella betrayed him and when he had "killed" Mimi, both of which were results of his love for them. Now that he couldn't love...what in the worlds could bring him despair?

'Perplexing...' the jester mused. He flipped to the back page of the book and ran his hand over it, feeling the magic flow to his fingertips. 'What does your sister have to offer me?' he said to the book. 'Show me the words.' He snapped his fingers.

Words appeared on the page in a similar format to before.

_While the book of darkness shall be proven false and the Dark One shall be killed, he shall rise again from the land of souls to wreak havoc among the living. He shall seek the aid of a Child of Beans, and the Chaos Heart shall come again, opening the Void, but in the end, the Chaos Heart shall choose two vessels in which to store its power: The Dark One and the Child of Beans. The Heroes, joined by the Child of Beans, shall bring to life the Purity Heart and the Void shall close. However, before the end of the great battle, the Heroes will know one fact above all:_

_Darkness breeds despair._

All in all, it seemed that the Prognosticuses were doing their jobs; the dark one foretold destruction and the light one foretold peace. However...

'There it is again...that same line.' He ran his finger across the bottom line. '_Darkness breeds...despair..._' He tapped it. 'This is very perplexing indeed.' He closed it and replaced it in his drawer. He would have to think about this.

He looked in the mirror to see Fawful's reflection. His expression mimicked the jester's: a confused yet smiling face. Dimentio removed his upper clothes to see that the black veins snaking across his chest had grown again; they were completely covering his torso, ending at his waist, neck, and shoulders. Just as he figured, it seemed this was the same for Fawful. He reached out to the mirror, sparks of magic cracking around his palm, until it was flat on the mirror's surface. 'Connected at the heart...' he breathed, staring into Fawful's eyes. 'Connected at the soul...' He put the hand into a fist and drew it away, turning around and floating a small ways across the room. 'That's what you and I are.' Magical energy began to build up in his fist and he clenched it tightly. 'But...that doesn't matter in the slightest.' His grin changed, looking as crazy and sadistic as it was known for. 'Because in the end...every, single, link, has to be...' He whirled around and fired a block of dimensional matter at the mirror, blasting it to pieces. He stood there unmoving as the pieces flew across the room. When they settled, a few loose pieces from the frame fell to the ground with soft _clink_s. The mirror frame was bent and dented. Dimentio tilted his head up to the ceiling, arms outstretched at his sides. '_Shattered._ Ah ha ha ha ha... Ahahahahahaha... AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!'

Fawful

Fawful walked with his head down, gloomily watching the forest path. After a while of this it was really uninteresting, but he persisted, not wanting to meet anyone's eyes.

'Kid,' Kamek said. 'You're depressing me. Come on, say something about fury or whatever, don't mope.'

'How can Fawful_ not_ have the moping?' he sighed. 'I have such guilt...'

'I could always do a little happy-spell,' Kamek offered.

Fawful smacked him. 'And have Fawful prancing around like one who is stupid?! No of the waying!'

Kamek sighed. 'Listen...' He dropped his voice to a whisper. 'No one here blames you for what happened to that girl. You need to try and pick this up for whatever's coming ahead.'

'How would you have knowledge?!' the Bean boy snapped. 'How much of the stuff that is being attributed to heroism have YOU done?!'

'You don't need to be a hero to know this. I've had to prepare troops for battle so many times it's crazier than _you_ are, and I know that a high moral makes for more efficient soldiers.'

'Fawful is not being a soldier!'

'No, but it's the same thing. You'll do better if you're happy.'

'Well I do not have any happiness in the body which is mine, what are you suggesting?!'

'Go talk to her.' He pointed a thumb back at Mimi. 'She seems to cheer you up.'

Fawful turned red. 'Wh-why is everyone saying such things of things that I am not knowing anything about?!'

'Oh come on Fawful, you're easier to see through than a Boo.' Kamek gave him a shove. 'Go talk.'

Fawful stuck out his tongue and then walked towards Mimi. 'Hello, I am saying...' he muttered.

'Oh, hi Fawful.' Mimi smiled. 'How're you?'

'I have guilt, like a child who gluttonously has the eating of a birthday cake at a party which is not his!'

Mimi's smiled disappeared. 'It's about Nastasia isn't it?' Fawful nodded. 'Why do you keep blaming yourself?'

Fawful sighed. 'Fawful is just thinking that he should have more control over the powers of darkness. Then she might still have aliveness...'

'Well, she doesn't.' Mimi looked straight ahead, her eyes shining with determination. 'Nassy wouldn't want us to beat ourselves up over this. She'd want us to press on and deal with it by avenging her. She did what she did to protect me. Now you need to make sure nothing bad happens to me either, otherwise she won't be happy with you.' She smiled again. 'Moping won't bring her back. If she's supposed to she will on her own time.' The girl looked at Blumiere. 'I learned that from him. I cried a lot when he left us. But now he's back. I'll cry for Nassy too, but if she's supposed to come back then she will.'

'What if she remains having the deceasedness?'

'Then whenever I'm killed, I'll go to her in the Overthere and give her a big hug.' She wiped a few tears away. 'We've got a job to do though, right?'

Fawful nodded. 'The jester of evil must be stopped.'

'Fawful, could you take off your glasses?' The Bean frowned but removed them and looked at her. She smiled. 'You look good without them. Have you tried contact lenses?'

Fawful scowled; he most certainly had.

It wasn't long before they saw the exit of the forest. 'There it is!' Luigi cried. 'Let's-a go!' He immediately bolted for the clearing, everyone following him. Fawful ran as fast as he could, eager to say farewell to the forest and see what Star Hill looked like. They burst out of it to see a sight none of them would ever forget.

Star Hill was very steep to be called a hill. The entire thing was made completely out of what looked like sparkling jewels in the sunlight. The hill shone a jade colour, its dazzling reflecting lights awing every person in the group, even Bowser. There was a blue, sparkling path snaking its way up the hill around several gigantic stars that were jutting from the hill. They looked to be made of tinted blue glass, though Fawful suspected that they must be some other material. He would have to take samples when this was all over. Around the middle of the ascent up the hill there was a large space, likely for resting, that consisted of a large spot in the middle and two slightly smaller spots to the right and left. The path continued on straight until it reached the top of the hill where it halted in the shape of a star bigger than those piercing the hill. Star Hill in its entirety was like a gigantic jewel, to say the very least.

'It's so _beautiful_...' Mimi breathed.

'Just like it was all those years ago...' Luigi sighed.

'I could build another castle here...' Bowser whispered.

'You can't, you'd ruin the sight...' Kamek said quietly.

'Wow, even you're all spellbound,' Peach said. 'Not everything gets through to Bowser.'

'That's where the Cobalt Star is, huh?' Mimi said, her eyes reflecting the sight. 'Guess I also found a getaway.'

_'Ahahaha...enjoying the view are we?'_ Dimentio appeared in his signature manner. 'So glad you could join me! I was appreciating it myself just now.'

'Dimentio, out of our way!' Mario growled. 'We don't have time to deal with you!'

The jester looked up to the Void, which had grown larger still, but had quite a while to go before it engulfed the sky. 'No you don't, do you?' He smiled. 'Well, perhaps we can make time.' He snapped his fingers and Grubba and Doopliss appeared. 'These two have been _dying_ to see you again!'

'Hyuk hyuk hyuk!' Grubba laughed. 'Long time no see eh Gonzales? Sarcasm o' course, seein' as I jus' saw ya only yesterday.'

'Time to get reacquainted in the greatest manner possible!' Dimentio cried. 'Well, for me anyway. Ahahaha.' He clapped his hands together, summoning up magic from the Chaos Heart. 'It's time for a dose of some magical steroids, the both of you. You're far too scrawny as you are now. Metaphorically speaking,' he added as he got a "Hey!" from Grubba. Extending his hands out to his sides he released black clouds of dark magic from his palms which descended on the minions, soaking into their skin.

'Oh yeah, now I can feel it!' Doopliss cried. 'You're going down now, slick! I'll make you wish you'd never come up to my steeple!'

While Doopliss didn't change, Grubba was having much more of a transformation. 'Heh heh...this is mighty familiar, it is.' He flexed muscles all over his body which had begun to bulge and grow. 'This is just like that Crystal Star used to do to me...only...this is better!' He threw his head back. 'Whoopie!' He leaped up and down, clapping his hands. 'YEEEEAAAAH! Time fer a world-class whoopin' ya little punks! MUUUUUSCLE UUUUUUUUUUUP!'

A blast of dark power exploded from the old Clubba, almost knocking the heroes off their feet. Grubba began to grow and change before their eyes. His entire body was bulking up to several times the size Grubba had been before. His arms seemed to inflate, his biceps and triceps bulging insanely. His legs grew large and dull yellow claws sprouted from his toes. His entire body grew enormous and his hair which before had been an messy orange mane was now spiked up on his head. The button on his green shirt popped off and that and his vest were now stretched and torn beyond their limits, only just making it past his arms. All that remained intact was the red bowtie, which now looked very tiny on the huge man. If that weren't enough, his body had also changed colour. His skin before had been blue but was now deeper, darker, just like the skin of Dimentio and Blumiere. His underbelly remained white and his lips turned from the orange that was common among Clubbas to a dark red. His shell changed to red as well and had sprouted dull yellow spikes, like the claws on his feet. The spiky hair on his head was the same shade of red as his lips and shell.

'I think I'm gonna be sick...' Mimi groaned after witnessing the transformation.

'MAAAAAACHOOOOOOO!' the transformed Clubba bellowed. 'HA HA HA! Now yer lookin' at a REAL powerhouse now, fellas! I'm the very bringer of CHAOS! BA HA HA!' Grubba plucked his hat off his head and crushed it in his huge fist, then removed his sunglasses and dropped them to the ground, stomping his foot on them. A soft tinkle could be heard as the glass broke. His eyes were as tiny as a generic Clubba's normally were, and glowed red with malevolence. He ground his fists together. 'Which one 'a you little cockroaches wants ta go up against the new and improved MACHO GRUBBA?!'

Mario stood his ground, looking from Doopliss to Grubba to Dimentio. Three of his enemies were here and they all wanted a piece of him. 'Midbus, Bowser, O'Chunks,' he said. 'You guys take care of Grubba.'

'Muh muh muh!' Midbus laughed. 'He is not strong. I am stronger. I crush him.'

'Bwa ha ha!' Bowser laughed as well. 'That guy obviously hasn't gone up against _me_ if he thinks he's that tough! These arms can pull ISLANDS, baby! GRAAAH!' He breathed out a jet of fire.

O'Chunks stood firm. 'Alrigh' then! I'll give 'im a chunkin' he'll never forget! GRAH GOOGLY!' He pounded his fists on his armoured chest.

'You done talkin', little fellas? Good.' He struck a pose, flexing his muscles. 'Good thing I love meself some seafood, cause I'm havin' a couple 'a shrimps fer lunch!'

'Ah, good choice Mario, though I'd say three against one isn't fair enough for the poor things,' Dimentio said, grinning. 'Who'll take on Doopliss, I wonder?'

Mario gritted his teeth. 'Peach, Mimi, Timpani and I will take on Doopliss.' They all nodded. Mario put up his hand to stop Blumiere from making an objection. 'Luigi, you take Blumiere, Kamek, and Fawful to fight Dimentio, understood?'

Luigi looked surprised and slightly afraid, but he nodded. He knew Mario's strategy: make the strong ones fight the strong foe and bring some variety for Doopliss. Mimi had her own shape shifting powers, Peach had some form of light magic that came from her purity of heart, and Timpani...well, he didn't really know exactly what Timpani would do. Mario would fight with the girls to protect them and also to get back at Doopliss for their last, unfinished fight. He had a bone to settle. By throwing all the magic users at Dimentio that meant that it would be magic versus magic. Luigi though...Luigi was fighting Dimentio not because of any particular skill, but because he had a bone to pick as well.

'Ah yes, my three favourite people in the world!' the magician exclaimed. 'Fawful, my current arch nemesis, Blumiere, my_ wonderfully_ unlovable brother, and Luigi.'

'I am not your brother,' Blumiere seethed. 'I will never acknowledge that!'

'And then there's you,' Dimentio continued, looking at Kamek. 'I'm afraid we've never met.'

The Magikoopa drew his wand. 'My name is Kamek. I'm King Bowser's trusted advisor.' He grinned smugly. 'And the greatest magician in the world.'

Dimentio's eyebrows raised. 'I sense a challenge from you. Very well...let me see your real potential, Kamek.' He snapped his fingers three times, grinning. 'And now the brawl shall commence, like many huge, sweaty, disgusting, moronic wrestlers fighting for the championship title!'

'Let's get ourselves ready...' Grubba boomed, reciting a line he used to use as the Glitz Pit announcer. 'To BAAAAAATTLE!'

*Heart*

The new Macho Grubba leaped up into the air and came down upon the three fighters. O'Chunks and Bowser only just avoided him but Midbus stood his ground and put his hands up, catching the colossal Clubba on his descent. His legs and arms almost buckled under the pressure, but he held him up.

'H-heavy...' Midbus grunted.

Grubba's foot came around and kicked Midbus in the snout, sending his entire body spinning. The Clubba landed on his feet. 'It'll take more than a big pile 'a bacon to send me packin' boys!'

Midbus' eyes widened and his nostrils flared. 'BACON?! YOU WILL BE CRUSHED!' He leaped up into the air and curled up in a ball, his armadillo-like hide protecting him. He rolled like an enormous bowling ball straight at Grubba, who wordlessly bent down, picked him up, and hurled him at the other two, hitting Bowser square in the stomach.

'GRAAAAAH!' Bowser yelled in pain, falling over backwards. Midbus unrolled and assumed a fighting stance. 'H-hey! Help me up!' Bowser was teetering on his spiked shell, unable to get back on his feet.

Midbus just ran, fuelled by rage, ignoring the Koopa's cries for help. He and O'Chunks circled the massive enemy, getting ready to pounce. O'Chunks locked eyes with Midbus. 'Let's get chunkin',' he said.

The both of them leaped at Grubba, who grinned and brought his foot down on Midbus' head and used it as a springboard, launching himself in the air and coming down in a powerful body slam, elbow first, on O'Chunks. He got off and surveyed the damage. 'Well, now this just ain't fun. I'd 'a thought you three were decent fighters, but I guess they just don't make 'em like they used to.' He struck another pose, light flashing off of him unexplainably.

Bowser gave a great heave and was back on his feet. O'Chunks and Midbus did the same. All three of them ran at Grubba, who struck another pose and did a back flip into the air. O'Chunks dove down and caught him, his entire body protesting under the weight. Midbus rolled up into a ball again and Bowser picked him up, hurling him at the huge foe. He hit his mark, right in the middle of his stomach.

'YAAACK!' Grubba heaved, falling out of O'Chunks' grip. 'Interestin' move there fellas, but I've got so many up my sleeves it's crazy.' He grinned smugly. 'Back in the day a few were made illegal.'

'My whole BODY'S illegal you freak!' Bowser roared. He rolled up into a ball, looking as if he were encased in two spiked Koopa shells. Midbus followed suit and soon the two former enemies were zooming this way and that.

'Slow down ya varmints!' Grubba shouted before Bowser rolled through his legs and sent him tumbling down for Midbus to hit in the back. 'That does it!' The Clubba brought both fists down on the ground and dark energy exploded out of the earth where Bowser and Midbus were. They flew through the air and crash landed hard. 'Hyuk hyuk hyuk! These dark powers are the bee's knees ain't they?'

O'Chunks wrapped his hands around Grubba's huge tail, lifted him off the ground, and brought him back down with a smash. 'Here's what O'Chunks can do, ya stinkin' showoff!' He spun him around and around and hurled him through the air.

'That brings back painful memories...' Bowser muttered.

Grubba spun in the air and landed on his feet, striking another muscular pose. 'Nice try, chunky.'

'HRAAAAAGH!' The Scot bellowed and ran straight into Grubba's stomach headfirst, knocking him into Bowser's path, who roasted him with fire. Midbus yanked out a spike-less flail, a great iron ball on a chain. He spun around and threw it at his foe, who ducked, caught it by the chain, and threw it right back. Midbus hurriedly ducked into a ball before it hit him, sending him rolling.

O'Chunks tensed all his muscles. 'CHUNKS AWAY!' he cried, then proceeded to do something completely vulgar and yet awe-inspiring: he rocketed to the skies using his own flatulence.

Grubba's small eyes widened. 'Well I'll be a monkey's uncle...' Soon the burly man was too high to be seen.

Bowser collided with Grubba with enough force to topple buildings. The countryman would have swatted the Koopa away without a second thought had Midbus not rushed in and did the same. Soon Grubba had a hand holding back each, the two of them pushing with all their might.

'GRAAAAAH GOOOOOOOOGLYYYYYYYYY!' O'Chunks bellowed, coming down from the sky and landing right on Grubba's back, his hands tightly holding onto the Clubba's spiked mane of hair. 'Time fer a world-class chunkin' yeh brawny beast!'

'YOU PIDDLIN' PIECE O' MEAT, GET OFF!' Grubba screamed.

O'Chunks yanked hard on his hair, pulling back his neck and making him teeter backwards. Bowser and Midbus both brought a multitude of punches upon the man. Grubba roared and a huge blast of energy exploded from him, sending the three fighters sky-high. 'Enough o' this play fightin' boys, time ta get serious. HERAAAAGH!' He made another exaggerated pose with his muscles, dark energy crackling from his body. 'Time fer Round 2!'

The adrenaline was pumping through Mario's veins like no tomorrow as he jumped, ducked, weaved, and otherwise dodged projectiles of dark energy being hurled from the invisible palms of Doopliss. 'Hey slick, come get me!' The Duplighost yelled, laughing. 'Whatever, I'll just come to you!' Doopliss disappeared in a poof of black smoke only to reappear behind the plumber and kick him in the head, the force increased by dark energy. Mario was sent flying and took a face plant to the hard ground. 'Ha ha, how's your nose, Mario?'

Someone tapped him on the shoulder. When he turned around he was met with a frying pan to the face. 'Better than yours,' Peach said coldly.

'Whoa,' Timpani said. 'Where'd you get that?' Peach just shrugged.

Doopliss picked himself up and shot more energy at the girls. Timpani jumped out of the way while Peach ducked behind an umbrella which, miraculously, was like an indestructible shield against the attack. Mimi flew in, suspended in the air magically, dozens of deadly Rubees orbiting her body. 'Take this, freak!' she yelled, all the Rubees shooting through the air at him.

Doopliss tried to dodge, but he got hit by a great many. He was fortunate that Mimi decided to use blunt gems rather than sharp ones. Probably pity. He poofed behind Mimi. 'Hey babe, behind ya.' As Mimi turned she disappeared in a poof of purple smoke and reappeared as a gigantic Chomp, leaping into the air and roaring as she came down. 'HOLY MOTHER OF GRA—'

_CRASH!_ Mimi came down upon him, crushing him under her weight. 'HAAACK!' Doopliss hacked, turning into a Boo and getting out from underneath her. Both shape shifters turned back to normal. 'Heh heh. So you can shape shift too, huh?' He grinned. 'How creative are you, though?' Doopliss turned into a gigantic crab-like beast, snapping his huge pincers menacingly.

Mimi smirked. 'Very.' Her form was a shirting mass of darkness.

'HA!' Doopliss' voice had a noticeable gurgle to it. 'You call THAT creative?'

A huge arm shot out of the shadowy mass and punched Doopliss in the face. The mass changed shape until it resembled a humanoid. _'Harder to sustain though.'_ Mimi was obviously bragging. The two punched and stabbed, Doopliss' blows hacking off small amounts of the mass and Mimi's knocking him back.

'Wow,' Peach said. 'A giant enemy crab.'

'ATTACK ITS WEAK POINT FOR MASSIVE DAMAGE!' Timpani screamed. Mimi formed her hand into a spiked ball and smashed his face. 'Or there's fine.'

Mimi wrapped her hands around Doopliss and leaned back, smashing his head on the ground while she got splattered from the impact. They both exploded into smoke and reappeared as themselves. 'You're pretty good!' Doopliss said, gasping.

Mimi hurled more Rubees, successfully hitting him. 'And you're just a freak.'

Mario jumped back into the fray, stomping on Doopliss' head and pulling out his Ultra Hammer. Doopliss fired more energy at him but Mario knocked it aside with the hammer. Doopliss rose into the air and rocketed at Mario, encased in a shell of dark energy. Mario swung his hammer and sent him flying back the way he came, but the force of the blow blew the top right off, leaving him with a useless stick. 'Mama mia...' Mario gasped, wide-eyed, panting heavily. He couldn't bring his guard up in time as the Duplighost repeated the attack.

Peach suddenly jumped in front of him and put her hands up, a shield of light and pink hearts protecting the both of them. 'Are you okay Mario?' she asked.

Mario smiled. 'I'm fine, thanks.'

A pulse of power from Peach shattered Doopliss' shell and ravaged his body sending him crashing to the ground. 'Ow! That's not fair!'

'Life's not fair,' Mario said. 'Believe me, I know.'

'I'm not done yet! I'll still—' Someone tapped him on the shoulder again. He turned around and Timpani punched him hard in the face. A strange, audible sucking sound could be heard as it connected. 'AUGH! That hurt!' Timpani punched and slapped and overall just brought Underwhere down upon him before he blew her away with a wave of energy. 'Cut it out! I'm not even trying, you hear me?!'

Timpani picked herself up and huffed. 'Well then start trying.'

Doopliss looked from her to Mimi to Peach to Mario and grinned. 'Whatever you wish, slick!'

'Come now, try a little harder heroes!'

Dimentio was quick, they all had to admit. It was really hard to get hits in on him when he was moving around so fast. Kamek was the one really fuelling his energy into the fight, moving around and teleporting at a speed rivalling Dimentio's. The two magicians traded magical attacks of different kinds: Kamek's were either the generic Magikoopa spells consisting of various geometrical shapes or derived from magical words to make different effects while Dimentio used his dimensional magic and power from the Chaos Heart to fuel his. Many projectiles missed, sometimes hitting the others and sometimes hitting each other. 'You're quick!' Kamek panted.

'As are you,' Dimentio replied with much more energy. Dimentio hit the ground and Kamek flew at him. He put out his hand and fired a pulse of dark magic out, sending the Magikoopa skidding across the ground. Luigi ran past him and did an uppercut to the jester's chin and following with a hammer blow. Dimentio did a spin in the air and waved his arms, making several glowing boxes appear. Luigi used them as stepping stones and Fawful's Headgear chomped onto the edges and threw them both up into the air. Luigi kicked Dimentio's head and Fawful grabbed the plumber in his Headgear, using the full mouth of it to swing at the magician. Dimentio warped and dodged, making extravagant poses as he did so.

'Dimentio!' Fawful growled. 'Have the staying still!'

'Why? Then. I'd. Get. Hit,' Dimentio laughed through warps. He brought his fist across Fawful's face and he fell to the ground, Luigi's muffled scream coming from in the mouth of the Headgear. He landed on his feet, trying to ignore the pain that blossomed from it, and hurled the screaming Mario Brother at Dimentio, who generated a magical barrier. Luigi smashed right into it headfirst, falling to the ground. 'Ahahaha!' the magician laughed. 'Your pain amuses me, like the jokes of a two-bit comedian on stage performing to an audience of one!'

He was interrupted in his laughing as Blumiere flew into his back and brought them both to the ground. He swung at Dimentio with his sceptre and shot dark magic at him with it, missing all the while. 'You should work on your aim, Blumiere. It's rather lacklustre. Ahahaha!'

Blumiere swung his sceptre sideways and hit Dimentio across the face, leaving an obvious mark on his flesh. The jester hit the ground and rolled, pushing himself up with his hands and hitting Blumiere with a block of magic. He waved his arms again and trapped the man in a box of energy. 'Ciao, my half-brother!' he said.

Kamek pointed his wand at Dimentio. '_Vulnero!_' he commanded, and a beam of pure power shot from his wand and hit the jester in the back. He screamed out in agony and crashed to the ground, the box around Blumiere disappearing.

Dimentio picked himself up. 'Im...impressive, Kamek...' He grinned eerily. 'That really hurt.' He shoved out his palm. 'TIME TO DIE!' A huge shockwave of black magic was sent towards Kamek, filling the air with a boom. It hit Kamek in the chest and threw him into the sky where he was caught by Fawful.

'Do you have deadness?!' Fawful gasped under the weight.

'Thankfully not,' Kamek grunted, his wand held in front of his chest protectively, still glowing.

Luigi stomped on Dimentio's head and turned to stare at him. 'You can't win Dimentio!' he shot.

Dimentio grinned and Luigi felt his skin crawl. 'Ah _yes_...if it isn't the sidekick, the underdog, the younger Mario Brother. How was it, I wonder, to be possessed by this?' He tapped his chest.

Luigi shuddered at the memory. The darkness all around him at the time had been the worst thing that had ever happened to him. He didn't know how people like Fawful and Dimentio could handle it. It was like all the happiness had been sucked out of him with a straw. 'I'm not your pawn anymore Dimentio! I'll beat you just like I did before!' He thrust out his hand, focussing. He wouldn't screw this up, not this time. He felt the power rush to his palm and shouted: 'THUNDER!'

The blast of electricity that burst from his hand threw Luigi himself back. Dimentio's eyes widened in shock (no pun intended) and wasn't able to avoid it. It hit him in the face, sending volts of electricity coursing through his body. He screamed in pain, laying on the ground in a spasm. Luigi was angry now; Dimentio had used him and taunted him. He kept firing bolts at the jester, over and over again, the agony in him increasing. 'UNCLE!' he wailed. 'UNCLE UNCLE UNCLE! I CRY UNCLE! STOP! MERCY! STOOOOP!'

Fawful was struggling. As he looked upon the sight he felt sorry for Dimentio; this was inhumane. As he looked at Blumiere and Kamek he saw that neither were trying to stop this. Kamek looked a little disturbed but obviously showed no mercy while Blumiere actually had a small smirk on his face. His heart pounded in his chest and tears sprang to his eyes.

_'The body will be destroyed.'_ The Chaos Heart was speaking to him in his mind. _'Then I will join with you, and you will be unstoppable. Everything shall belong to you.'_

'Fawful does not want...' He couldn't finish. He couldn't decided what he should do. Part of him wanted the power and to see Dimentio die...but this just seemed like overkill.

Dimentio locked eyes with Fawful and saw his mental conflict. A grin spread across his face despite the pain he was in. _'Connected at the heart...connected at the soul...' _Those words went through both their minds. The jester snapped his fingers once and Fawful's mind lit up, forcing away the thoughts of the Chaos Heart. A single thought went through his head:

_'Save me Fawful.'_

Fawful screamed and ran at Luigi, smashing into him and halting the barrage of lightning. Dimentio immediately got up and warped over to Luigi, grabbing him by the throat. He smiled. 'All you needed was a little prompting, didn't you Fawful? Ah ha ha.' He squeezed. 'You're such a good little pawn.'

Fawful, now angry at being used, ran at Dimentio, grabbed him by the back of his clothes, and lifted him off his feet, making him let go of Luigi. 'I...I...' He couldn't believe he was doing this, he really shouldn't have been able to. 'I HAVE FURY, FINK-RAT!' Darkness flowed through his body and exploded around the magician, sending him up in the air screaming. Fawful brought his hands down and Dimentio crashed to the ground.

Dimentio stood up, shaking and grinning. 'You can really use that can't you? Ah ha ha.' He looked over at Doopliss, who was holding his own, though slowly being beaten down. He looked at Grubba, who was still battling Bowser, Midbus, and O'Chunks. In-between attacks he stood panting. His movements were slowing. Everyone was weakening, even him. 'I suppose this is too much.' He hovered in the air, curing up in a ball, the dark power building up. He suddenly threw out his arms and legs, a blast of energy knocking every single person off of their feet, even Doopliss and Grubba. When they landed all eyes were on the jester. He stood there, feet crossed, hovering in the air. 'Minions, go rest. You'll kill yourselves.' He snapped his fingers and they were gone before they could protest. Everyone ran to Dimentio, who looked on all twelve of them with amusement. 'Excellent fighting, I must say. You all have shown the strength I faced those years ago.' He turned around and looked up to the summit of Star Hill. 'You seek the Cobalt Star.' He was panting; that last attack had cost him a lot of energy. 'Ah ha ha. Perhaps I shall take a small visit up to that summit. Ciao.' He disappeared.

Everyone looked at each other. They were all gasping for breath, more tired than they had been in a while fighting against supercharged opponents. It was several minutes when Mario had recovered enough to speak.

'He's going up to the Star!' he screamed, pointing to the hill. 'We've got to get him!'

With that, everyone made a mad dash to Star Hill. They ran faster than they thought possible, Fawful using his Headgear and Kamek using his broomstick. Blumiere and Mimi both flew. Everyone else just ran like there was no tomorrow. They got to the top fairly quickly when considering the length of the trail to find Dimentio hovering there, a mad grin on his face.

'My oh my, that was fast.' He clapped his hands. 'I'm rather tired, but still up for a fight.' He moved to the side to reveal the Cobalt Star sitting on a pedestal. 'I took the liberty of finding this for you. Think of it as the spoils of your victory...if you are indeed victorious in the end.' The Void's lightning flashed overhead.

'Okay guys...' Mario said quietly. 'We can't all rush at the same time, so I'll go first, then—'

'Forget that!' Kamek snorted. 'I'm the greatest magician in the world, I won't be beaten by this clown!' He ran forward brandishing his wand.

'I have fury!' Fawful yelled, flying after Dimentio with his Headgear. Mario sighed.

Dimentio flew around, firing more projectiles while Kamek deflected them with his magic. Fawful shot energy balls at him, swerving through the air to avoid Dimentio's attacks. 'Ahhahaha! Far too slow, my friends!'

Fawful flew up and knocked into Dimentio. Both of them toppled over the edge of the summit and fell a small ways. Dimentio got his feet firmly onto a few star-like stones on the hill and whipped Fawful around. making him hit the side. His rockets flared dangerously, sending him up above the Pleaser of Crowds. He shot more blasts at him but Dimentio warped back to Kamek, hitting him with more blocks of dimensional magic.

'Someone get that Star!' Mario yelled, ducking under all the attacks.

'I got it!' Mimi cried, running over to the Cobalt Star. She picked it up. 'Got it!'

Dimentio and Kamek warped in front of her by chance. Dimentio stuck his hand out and Kamek put forth his wand. Dimentio's hand glowed black, a powerful attack being prepared. '_Intereo per lux lucis!_' Kamek yelled.

Dimentio's dark magic collided with Kamek's light spell. The resulting effect was an explosion so large it engulfed more than the entire summit of Star Hill, throwing everyone, Dimentio, included, right off it.

Everyone screamed, the cries sounding like a choir of voices, each a different pitch. Fawful spun out of control, his entire world whirling about before his eyes. He hit the side of the hill, the hard, star shaped stones not making his collisions any more comfortable.

A green blur passed through his vision. He used his rockets to steady himself to see Mimi's limp body flailing about. He shot after her, grabbing her by the waist and struggling to hold her up. 'Mimi!' he cried. 'Do you have wellness?!'

She groaned; her entire body was covered in scratches that leaked a glowing red blood. 'I'm...fine...'

'You are not sounding like someone who has fineness.'

'Fawful, I'm—' She suddenly realized she was still tightly clutching the Cobalt Star to her chest. 'I've got the Cobalt Star!' she cried.

Dimentio appeared in front of them and grabbed Mimi by the throat, pressing them both up against the painful hillside. His entire body was charred from the blast, his mask slightly melted. He took it off his face and threw it behind him. 'That,' he said, grinning like a madman. 'That was the second mask you heroes have ruined.' He giggled. 'I'm going to kill you now. Ciao.'

Fawful and Mimi could see the energy move up from his chest and up his arm and their eyes widened. Mimi screamed, Fawful yelled, Dimentio laughed. The two green beings shut their eyes as a flash of black light overtook them...and disappeared into the Cobalt Star.

Dimentio's smile twitched and he looked at the artefact. '...what?'

An even bigger blast of pure, white light exploded from the Cobalt Star, its force shooting the magician into the horizon, his cry echoing through the area.

Fawful and Mimi opened their eyes. '...whoa.' That was the first thing both of them said.

'This thing's powerful!' Mimi admired. 'It must have protected me from the blast too.' She looked down, then quickly looked back up. 'L-let's go down now.'

They reached the start of Star Hill's trail to find everyone standing there waiting for them. They had all suffered various forms of injuries, including scratches, bruises, burns, and other ones. The one hurt most of all, however, was Kamek. His body was a charred mess and his breathing was laboured. His wand lay at his side, shattered to pieces.

Fawful and Mimi walked over to him. 'Kamek!' Bowser yelled. 'Kamek, say something naggy! Or...or insult Kammy! SAY _SOMETHING!_'

'Kamek, you must have aliveness or Fawful will never be able to have the killing of you!' Fawful said.

Kamek coughed and opened his eyes. 'Still...holding grudges...kid?'

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. 'You old fart!' Bowser growled. 'I was worried!' Bowser scooped him up.

'King Bowser...I can walk...'

'Shut up, gramps. You're comin' with me.'

'Mario!' Mimi cried. 'Look!' She held out the Cobalt Star.

Mario's face lit up and he smiled broadly. 'You did really well! Anyone else would have just dropped it.' He looked at the Cobalt Star's reflective surface. 'Well, there's another one down. We've got the Cobalt Star!' He jumped up in the air and let out a whoop of joy, all the fatigue and worry disappearing.

Fawful smiled. Luigi tapped his shoulder. 'Hey, uh, Fawful?'

Fawful turned. 'What are you wanting?' His voice was cold.

'Um...thanks for knocking me over there.' He fidgeted.

The Bean frowned. 'Why is that being a thing of goodness?'

'I wasn't being very...heroic there, was I? I was just so angry, and I...lost control. I wouldn't have been better than Dimentio if I killed him right there like that.'

'Oh. I am seeing.' Fawful didn't see at all.

'Well, uh...thanks again.' He walked off.

Fawful looked out upon Star Hill once more, savouring the sight. The summit had a trail of smoke coming from it, but that did little to disrupt the view. They had gotten another item and were another step close to the Purity Heart.

_Soon, _he thought. _Soon Fawful will have victory._ He imagined Mimi and smiled. What would be in store for the two of them after Dimentio kicked the bucket, he wondered?


	20. Chapter 20: Matters of the Heart

Chapter 20: Matters of the Heart

Dimentio

Dimentio awoke.

He was lying on his back on a hard surface, the wind whipping his hair about. His eyes were shut still, but he could feel the hard floor and the wind against his body and hear the groaning of the Void in the sky. He had to be at his castle; that was the only dimension where the Void was this strong. There was something else too though...the scent of perfume. It burned in his nostrils and he coughed, opening his eyes.

'Well good morning.'

'AUGH!' Dimentio flailed around in surprise as he saw Esmine right on top of him. He shoved her off and glared at her as she laughed at him. 'What in the worlds do you think you're doing?'

Esmine fought back another laugh. 'Your look was priceless.'

'YOU SHOULD KNOW YOUR PLACE!' the magician roared, thoroughly shaken.

'Oh come on, I wasn't gonna do anything to you.' She smirked. 'You're blushing like crazy.'

Dimentio spun around and crossed his arms. He felt hot and embarrassed and his dark blue cheeks had taken on a black blush as blood rushed to them. 'What were you thinking?' he spat, trying to keep himself from killing her right there.

'What, no "Thank you Esmine for saving me the humiliation of facing my minions looking like a complete mess?"' She huffed. 'You look AWFUL.'

Dimentio scowled and snapped his fingers, making a mirror appear. 'I can't possibly look that...oh my.' The jester was badly hurt; his clothes were completely burned and smouldering, as if he'd just walked through a giant fire. Deep gashes covered his skin, glowing with a magical shine as the black substance from the Chaos Heart tried to heal his wounds without success. His face was scratched up to Underwhere, a scar running down his face diagonally over his dull grey eye. 'That _is_ a problem.'

'Told you.' Esmine smiled. 'I figured I'd take you up here to save you the embarrassment of facing the other three and have some fun while I was at it. Not THAT kind of fun!' she snorted after seeing Dimentio's horrified face. 'I just wanted to scare you.'

'Hmph. Repeat your antics and I'll wipe you off the face of existence.'

Esmine's eyes had begun to give off that glow again. 'You're no fun. C'mon, couldn't we just...have some alone time, you and me?' She ducked just in time as one of the magician's dimensional blocks was flung her way. 'Fine, be that way.' She sat down.

Dimentio sat too, staring up at the Void. The Cobalt Star's magic was wearing off and his wounds were healing. 'You're such a difficult minion, girl,' he sighed. 'Why can't you go off and jump some poor, helpless man in some other dimension?'

Esmine chuckled. 'What can I say? I'm smitten.'

'Your eyes are glowing again, please desist.'

The girl crossed her arms and pouted. 'How do you _do_ that? Nobody's immune to a succubus!'

Dimentio grinned and tapped his chest. 'The Chaos Heart certainly helps, though I believe my will is simply strong enough to resist you. Only weak-minded men fall victim to your kind, Esmine. Perhaps those kinds of men are all you've preyed on.'

They both returned to looking into the sky. 'So what's your plan, exactly, after the Void's finished?'

'Total replacement, my dear.' The magician's eyes shone, even his grey one, and he grinned. 'A perfect world, all for me...and for my allies of course.'

'A perfect world...' Esmine repeated, misty-eyed. 'No pain...no heartbreak...'

'No death, no betrayal...' Dimentio added.

'No discrimination...' the girl continued.

'And most of all...' Dimentio's eyes darkened. 'No love for anybody.'

Esmine turned. 'No love? Why not?'

'Love is completely worthless.' The Pleaser of Crowds was smiling again, the lightning from the Void reflecting in his eyes. 'It brings only pain and suffering, heartbreak and despair. You let a person into your heart and they turn around and stab you in the back!' His heart was pounding and with each beat a burst of pain was sent through him.

'Painful memories?' Esmine seemed interested.

'Yes, painful, but not regrettable. Without my experiences I wouldn't know how to improve the world.'

'What happened?'

Dimentio hesitated, then shrugged. 'I loved a girl and she betrayed me. In my heartbreak I realized that I was better off to forget the notion of love and let the power of the Dark Prognosticus allow me to do so.' His eyes showed traces of an old madness and pain. 'Now she's looking down upon me from the Overthere...until I erase her from existence completely.'

'Do you ever regret giving up on her?'

'Not in the slightest. Her death was necessary. One step towards my perfect world.' He grinned. 'And completely enjoyable.'

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Esmine shudder. 'You're...insane.' He could hear the fear in her voice.

'And yet you're smitten with me? Interesting choice you've made.' He smirked.

Esmine smirked too. 'I have a weird taste in men I guess.'

'What of you, Esmine?' Dimentio asked. 'Do you have a story to tell?'

The girl shuddered again. Dimentio waited a few moments and she answered. 'My brother was murdered.' Lightning flashed from the Void again. 'I don't know who the murderer was...but he can't be alive now.' She wiped a tear away.

'Oh?' Dimentio raised an eyebrow. 'Why could he not still live?'

'Because he never found what he was looking for.' She took a breath. 'He never found the Dark Prognosticus.'

The next lightning flash seemed bigger and brighter to Dimentio. He frowned and looked at her. 'What did you just say?'

'My brother...he found that book one day. That had to be what the killer was after. He wanted to see the prophecy, to see what would happen to him. That's how it always was. People came to him, wanting to see what their futures held, then left terrified. Someone stole the book from my brother the day he was killed. His murderer never found the book and left the dimension.'

Dimentio's eyes narrowed. 'That is very interesting indeed.' Another bolt of lightning flashed. 'Did you see this murderer?'

Esmine shook her head. 'I told you, no. I saw...' She swallowed some saliva. 'I saw his silhouette, and my brother's. I heard him scream, I...' She fought back a sob. 'I heard laughter, some sort of laughter.'

'What did this laughter sound like?'

She sniffed. 'I can't remember. I try to, but I just can't.' She looked at him. 'You're interested all of a sudden.' He was staring intently at her.

Dimentio turned away. 'Merely reminds me of the tales of another person. No doubt a member of the Tribe of Darkness before it was founded.'

'Wait, I heard those people existed forever!' Esmine choked. 'Does that mean he's still alive somewhere?'

'That is incorrect. They were all wiped out when my dear half-brother used the Prognosticus to destroy the dimension. Your brother's murderer is long gone.'

Esmine sighed, dejected. 'I'd have loved to watch him squirm.'

Dimentio was frowning; something about Esmine's recounting reminded him of somewhere he'd gone long ago...

'Mimi...' he muttered, his heart thudding out painful beats.

'What?' Esmine asked.

'Oh, nothing.' Dimentio shook his head.

'You're looking better,' the girl noted. He was mostly all healed, his clothes almost mended. 'Do you have a family?'

'Nothing I'm particularly proud of,' the jester answered. 'My brothers were repulsive and eventually killed themselves in a prison cell, my father died at my hands, my half-brother is on the side of the heroes, and my mother is—'

His eyes widened. 'Your mother is?' Esmine pressed.

'My mother...' Dimentio got to his feet. 'I must leave.'

'To see your mother?'

'Precisely.' The magician dusted himself off and snapped his fingers; another mask appeared in his hand.

'Where do you get all those?' Esmine asked.

'I've made plenty copies of the original,' Dimentio answered. 'Ciao.' He warped away.

His mind was moving at a million miles a minute; he had completely forgotten to visit his mother, Raphaella. Early on in his life she had been a source of comfort and joy to everyone in the family, even his father Ganter. Everything had been so much better then; though Ganter had still been harsh and his brothers insufferable, there had been a noticeable difference, looking back as far as he could. After a time she had been stricken with a terrible illness that completely destroyed her mind and body, making her blind and absolutely crazy. They had tried at first, but in the end they sent her away to someone who _could_ help her and they never saw her again. It was only after he had learned of the existence of other dimensions did he find her again in a world created specifically for people like her. He had promised her he'd visit once a season, and while he didn't love her anymore due to the Chaos Heart, it was a promise he was going to keep no matter what happened to him. She had been the greatest person in his life before she went away, and after that everything had gone downhill. He would have to explain to her, somehow, why he hadn't been visiting. He needed something to tell her, something to make her understand. Really though, he was going to see her again and that was all that mattered.

He entered the dimension.

For a moment he couldn't process what he saw, but when he did his eyes went wide and his body went numb.

The whole dimension was nothing but blank whiteness. The ground, though solid, was completely white. The sky and horizon were white. In the distance he could see the black, destroyed remains of the asylum that once existed here. No wind blew. No light shined. There was no scent in the air, no sounds other than his own breathing.

It was a true World of Nothing.

The Void had deleted everything and everyone...including his mother.

After a moment his mind was able to process what he saw. His body was rigid. _I've killed her..._ he thought. _My mother is...dead..._

Suddenly, pain exploded in his chest. It was a white hot, stabbing pain that took over his entire body. He cried out in pain and sank to his knees, his arms wrapped around himself. He heard the Chaos Heart give a screech in his mind but he barely registered it. Pain had taken over everything.

_What is this...?_ he yelled out in his head, unable to talk. _What is this pain...?_ He screamed in agony.

_'Dimentio...'_

His eyes snapped open; that voice was familiar. His face was locked on the blank white floor. 'Wh-who...you're...you can't...urk...' He couldn't finish his own sentence.

_'It's been a while...Dimentio.'_

'Where...how could...you can't...'

_'I know you want to see me, so just look up. I'm right here.'_

Dimentio, fighting against the pain, slowly tilted his head up. Looking down at his cringing form was the would-be monarch of his home world.

Princess Rosabella.

She smiled. 'Hello, Mr. Jester.'

The shock that took over his body was so powerful that for a second even the Chaos Heart's wall over his emotions faltered. That was all it took for it to split a little, and a little bit of the emotion he had blocked out seeped in.

Love. He felt it for a moment, warm and inviting. It filled his body like an elixir, calming him and stilling his breath...but that was only for a moment, because then thoughts of Rosabella, Mimi, and Raphaella filled his head. With the love came a horrible guilt. And with the guilt came a crippling, crushing sorrow.

His heart seemed to shatter into a million pieces as the deaths of his love and his only true parent figure filled his mind. Terrible grief welled up in his throat and before he knew it tears were streaming down his face. All of this sadness escaped his mouth in a bloodcurdling scream. Magical energy and bolts of electricity began crackling to life around him, looking for something to destroy, but there was nothing in this shadow of a world that they could wreck.

'You...you can't be real!' Dimentio yelled, choking on his own words. 'You're dead! DEAD!'

Rosabella's smile faltered. 'I'll exist as long as you remember me. Your mind is to blame for this.'

Dimentio's teeth were clenched as the salty liquid kept coming out of his eyes and down the inside of his mask. 'I killed you...why are you...?' The princess frowned, her pink eyes sad. She walked up to him and touched the edge of his mask. Dimentio tried to smack her away but he found that his hand went right through her. Rosabella, however, was somehow able to remove the mask from his face.

'This isn't the same one I made for you is it?' she asked. 'It's different.'

'St-stop it...' Dimentio groaned. 'Get...get out...GET OUT OF MY HEART!' He smacked the ground with his palm and more sparks flew up. 'YOU FILTHY, WRETCHED TRAITOR!' He could feel the Chaos Heart desperately trying to block out the emotion that could destroy it; it was working, but only very slowly.

Rosabella looked away. 'You hurt me, Dimentio. I thought we were friends, and—'

'SHUT UP!' the magician roared, staring up at her. His heart was broken to the point of actual physical pain and he realized that he was sad and angry at himself. He was angry for killing Rosabella and his mother, he was angry for trying to eliminate Mimi. Those three people had touched his heart and all he had done was shove them aside. He was also angry at Rosabella, and the rage that he had harboured inside of him for so long was exploding out. 'You never loved me! The only person who mattered was that pathetic prince!'

'That's not true,' the girl replied; she was keeping her own emotions under control, but even so Dimentio could hear her sadness. 'I _did_ love you, just not in the same way as Allen. You were the greatest friend I'd ever had.'

'That's not good enough!' The boy clenched his fists and he felt more like a sixteen year old teenager than he had ever felt in his life. 'My entire _life_ was devoted to serving you, to making you happy, and what do I get in return? Insults and lies!' He pounded the ground over and over. He could feel the heartbreak slowly fading away, but even now the pain was fresh and awful. 'You shattered my heart to pieces!'

'And you shattered mine.'

'SEE?' Dimentio flung a block of magic at her which flew harmlessly through her body. He got to his feet and glared at her, his fury dominating his body. He was shaking and his tears were evaporating from a magical heat. 'Love is completely useless! All it's ever done is destroy destroy destroy!' He flung his hands up in the air. 'It destroyed who I once was, it destroyed you, and Allen, and Blumiere's entire world, and countless others! It brings only pain and suffering, rage and despair! It would be so much better if it simply didn't exist at all!'

'You're wrong, love is so much more,' Rosabella replied. 'You've felt the good side before, with me and Mimi—'

'HOW IS IT WORTH IT?' He fired another block which did the same thing as the first. 'How can momentary happiness erase the past pain? How can loving someone else heal the scars of memories? Mimi turned her back on me in the end, just like YOU did! Love is for the pathetic and weak!'

'Love is not!' the princess shot back. 'Love is pure and wonderful and no matter how much heartbreak you go through there is always someone worth it all in the end. Love isn't useless. Love shows that you have a heart.'

'WHO NEEDS A HEART?' the jester screamed. He calmed down and stopped his shaking. He could feel the Chaos Heart cease its struggle as the love he had felt was flushed from his body. He looked up at Rosabella with the same cold eyes he had possessed for so long; they were devoid of any warmth. 'Who needs a heart...' He grinned at her. '...when all it does is break?'

She sighed sadly. 'I remember when your eyes had more in them then that cold glare Dimentio. I remember when things were good between us.'

'It's all in the past, _princess_.' He chuckled, feeling a slight pain in his heart. 'You may have caught me off guard, but I still have no love for you or anyone anymore. The Chaos Heart has seen to that.'

'How can you live when your heart is so...hollow?' Rosabella asked. 'Holding back love will dig a hole in your heart that can never be filled.' Her eyes locked with his. 'It will try to be though. What do you feel right now, when you look at me?' Dimentio frowned and tugged at his chest, which had begun to hurt a little more. 'It hurts, doesn't it? Pure pain. Whenever your heart cries out for love it will never receive, all you feel is pain.' She shook her head. 'Love can never be truly erased. There will always be something to remind you what you're keeping at bay.'

The boy glared at her; she was acting much more like a queen then the young princess he had known. 'Just leave,' he ordered. 'Stay out of my heart and mind...forever.'

She didn't say anything in response, just turned around and disappeared. Dimentio picked up his mask and snapped his fingers, getting rid of the tear tracks. He put it on his face and sighed. 'Mother...' he muttered. 'I'm...sorry.' The pain in his heart increased and he grimaced.

_'It hurts, doesn't it? Pure pain. Whenever your heart cries out for love it will never receive, all you feel is pain. Love can never be truly erased. There will always be something to remind you what you're keeping at bay.'_

'Love...' he breathed. He didn't feel it anymore. His heart was devoid of affection again...but this time it was different. He felt like there was something...missing. The memory of the brief warmth he had felt before despair had taken over was fresh in his mind. It had felt...good. It had felt like it was a piece of him that was missing. He tried to think it into his body. He thought of Rosabella and Mimi, tried to remember what exactly he had found so alluring about them. Nothing happened. He thought of his mother and the good times they had had in the past. His heart didn't stir. Rosabella had been right; he felt like a hollow being. For the first time in a while he found himself actually desiring the warmth he had forgotten existed. 'For an emotion that brings only pain...' he breathed. 'Why did it make me feel...whole?' He sighed and surveyed the blank dimension, remembering that his mother had lived and died here...and that he had killed her. He hadn't wanted that. No one would want to destroy someone they loved, particularly family. If he had felt so horrible about it, he couldn't even begin to imagine the pain someone like Fawful might face.

His face lit up and his lips spread into a wide grin. 'Destroy family...' An idea was forming in his head. He knew he shouldn't be happy about it considering how it had formed, but it was just too wonderful to pass up. He warped out of the dimension.

Dimentio hovered over the floor of a decrepit old mansion. The whole place was old and worn, the floorboards and walls falling apart. It had been a long time since it had been used. Someone else was there too, hidden in the shadows and looking at him.

_I am truly a god,_ Dimentio thought, pleased with himself. _If I can create like this, there is nothing I can't do!_

All it had taken was a single hair, a small strand of old DNA. The remnants of the departed contained small portions of their soul. When supercharged with enough power their soul could regenerate and form into what they had been in life, remembering everything up to and including their deaths. Even, Dimentio figured, if their soul had been deleted from the world. It had worked like a charm; enough energy from the Chaos Heart and he had a new minion.

'So,' the person said; her voice was rough and gravely, like the voice of a stereotypical witch. 'All I have to do is kill your enemies and I go free?'

'That is correct,' Dimentio answered. 'A small task really. I can aid you if you require it.'

'Sounds easy enough to me. Who're these enemies of yours?'

'Oh, you'll remember two of them. They go by the names of Mario and Luigi.'

There was a pause. 'I get to go free by killing my own enemies?' The woman seemed surprised and excitement had crept into her voice.

'Yes, and with the power I have bestowed upon you it should be simple, don't you think?'

He could see her grin in the shadows. 'It DOES seem simple. Oh, what a treat, ha ha!'

'Vengeance is sweet,' Dimentio agreed, smiling.

'Hahahaha! Oh how I want to see those losers beg for mercy! Ha ha...hahaha...EEYAH HA HA HA HA!'


	21. Chapter 21: Temptation

Chapter 21: Temptation

Fawful

Everyone who had the ability to dimension-flip carried everyone to Toad Town's front gates. They were all so exhausted from the fight before that a lot of them collapsed upon stopping. Even Bowser and Midbus, though still able to stand, were panting heavily. Fawful lay on the ground, gasping. Even though the Cobalt Star had protected him and Mimi from Dimentio's would-be fatal blow, it still took a number on them. Carrying several people through the dimensions was no easy task either. He had been fortunate that Dimentio had given him that power, but he was regretting it just a little at this point.

'Whew!' Mimi panted, sitting down beside him. 'I'm pooped.'

'I am having poop too!' Fawful groaned.

'Please never say that again,' the shape shifter said. 'Ever.'

Fawful was too tired to ask why; he felt as if his entire body had been run over by a steamroller. The fight had taken a lot out of him and he felt like he needed several days' rest.

'Jeez!' Luigi huffed. 'I could sure use several days' rest!'

That about summed up Fawful's thoughts verbally.

Mario was bent over, his hands on his knees. 'We need to...get some...'

'Rest?' Timpani suggested. Even she had pulled her weight in the fight against Doopliss, and she was just as tired as the rest. Her body was covered in bruises and cuts, yet she looked more alive than ever.

'No, we need some items.' Mario straightened his back, groaning a little. 'Toad Town has a shopping mall with a lot of things in it, so we can restock there and—'

'A SHOPPING MALL?' both Mimi and Timpani exclaimed together.

'Er...yes, a shopping mall. Great place for items different kinds of clothes and...' He froze. 'Oh Grambi no...'

Mimi and Timpani looked at each other and grinned widely. 'SHOPPING SPREEEEEE!' both of them squealed. They ran off like the wind despite their injuries.

Peach smiled. 'I could go for some shopping.' She walked off after them.

The men all stared. Even Kamek, laying in Bowser's hands, turned his head. 'I have more confusion than any confusion I am ever having before,' Fawful said. 'What had the happening?'

Luigi shook his head. 'Girls being girls Fawful. They love to shop.'

'Whying?' It didn't make any sense to him.

Luigi just shrugged. 'Women are strange beings.' The Bean decided he'd sooner just accept that than try to understand why shopping was supposed to be so fun.

It was soon understood that there were too many things to do in a group. As such, everyone did what they wanted. The girls shopped. Mario, Luigi, and O'Chunks looked for items to carry with them as well as heal all of them. Bowser and Kamek went into Merlon's spinning house to seek aid. Blumiere followed them, hoping to lend a hand, and Fawful and Midbus decided to see what magic could truly do. Bowser opened the door and slid in with difficulty, making sure not to drop or otherwise hurt his advisor on the way in. Blumiere went in after and held the door open for Fawful and Midbus.

The room was just as it had been before, with the stars lining the blue walls and the crystal ball lying on a table in the centre of the room. Merlon sat at his chair, looking at them. He had a pleased expression on his face at first, but it soon turned grave. 'Oh my,' was all he could say. Kamek coughed, his body still badly charred. 'What happened here?'

'That freak Dimentio almost blew him to pieces!' Bowser exclaimed angrily.

Merlon got up and went into the back room behind him, bringing out a stretcher. 'I get a lot of magic-related injuries,' he explained. Bowser put Kamek on the stretcher, making him groan.

'Hurts...' Kamek croaked.

Fawful stepped forward. 'Headgear,' he said. 'Deposit Kamek's stick of magicalness.'

'Wand...' the Magikoopa huffed. Fawful didn't respond as the mouth of his Headgear opened up and released all the bits and pieces of the man's magical wand onto the table.

'That is not good...' Merlon said sadly. 'Without a wand you won't be able to channel your magic Kamek.' Kamek moaned his displeasure. 'Until you make a new one of course.'

'Can't you magically heal him or something?' Bowser grunted impatiently.

Merlon took out some tea leaves and started preparing them. 'That exceeds my abilities, unfortunately. All I can do is aid the healing process.' The Koopa King crossed his arms. Fawful was disappointed too; he'd hoped to see something that he could possibly imitate in the future with the Chaos Heart. Merlon wiped the wand pieces into the trash can, ignoring Kamek's protesting. 'It won't be any use to you now, you know. Even if we could repair it it would malfunction at every opportunity.' He took out an Ultra Shroom and a 1-Up Mushroom and put them in a blender, mixing them into a paste before pouring it into the tea. 'You'll need to make a new one. A better one,' he added. 'How long have you had that wand anyway?'

'Since...' Kamek took a deep breath. 'I don't...know.'

'I'll take that as quite a while. Drink this.' He poured a little tea down his throat. Kamek winced at the heat. 'It's best when it's hot, believe me.'

'Listen you, you need to get Kamek on his feet really fast!' Bowser said. 'He's really useful!'

'No,' the fortune teller said. 'He won't be going anywhere for a while. I should be able to heal his burns fast enough, but he's broken a few crucial bones from the looks of it. Making him fight would be suicide. He _will_ be useful here,' he added upon seeing Bowser's enraged face. 'When the time comes to create the Purity Heart, he will assist us.'

'Us?' Midbus spoke for the first time in a while. 'Who else?'

Merlon smiled from under his hood...or so it seemed. Fawful couldn't actually tell. 'My family is going to help us. Another person too, but that is for later. For now I suggest leaving Kamek in my care. Your other friends might be waiting.' Bowser and Midbus went out with Blumiere letting Merlon know that he was going to stay and help. Fawful took one last look at the old Magikoopa on the stretcher and sighed; Kamek and Fawful had had several bad encounters throughout the years, but looking at him now made Fawful wonder how he could have had troubles with him. He also felt slightly sorry for him, being almost completely crippled.

'Kamek,' he said. Kamek turned. 'Be getting well soon.' The Beanish boy turned around away from Kamek's surprised face and walked out the door.

Fawful decided to walk around Toad Town and see what it had to offer. He had been through the place before but hadn't really stopped to look around considering he was busy awakening a source of raw evil.

There were lots of things of interest. Several item shops and inns, a dojo, a pipe near the main gate that lead to the Mario Brothers' house, the house of the renowned chef, Tayce T. Despite Fawful's villainous background, she gave him one of the tastiest cookies he had ever eaten, wishing him good luck with his adventures with Mario. It somehow warmed Fawful's heart to get that kind of affection, and he found himself wondering again why villainy had been so important to him. It was tough to decide what he would do after this. Could he reform? That thought was slightly comforting, yet so alien. He missed the thrill of hatching plans, being steps ahead of his enemies. Even though there were risks involved, that was what made him happy.

There was a post office in town too. He checked it out for the heck of it and found to his surprise that he actually had mail from a few villains. Some were expressing how they liked his work and hoped that he might consider taking them on as minions, others were threats saying he was to stop being a villain and not mess with them. Fawful couldn't help but scoff at these ones, and asked the old Parakoopa at the desk why he gave the Bean his letters. He answered, 'In sun, rain, or snow, we will deliver our letters, no matter who writes them.' As he left, Fawful felt happy in a different way; there were people writing him letters of admiration! He was proud of himself, grinning widely.

There was a train near the south end of town and a farm as well, which Fawful stayed away from; he didn't particularly do well with animals. He decided to look at the new board.

_**It's the end of the world! The destructive Void appears once again!**_

_A short while ago, the Void appeared in our skies just like last time, terrifying millions across the Mushroom World. The last time it appeared, Mario, Luigi, Bowser, and our dear Princess Peach were able to stop it. Reports indicate that the aforementioned four are travelling with many new friends, a surprising one being the infamous villain Fawful, who was believed to be dead. It is only a small circle on the horizon at this time, but it will no doubt grow larger. We send our wishes to the heroes and their friends. Yes, even to Fawful._

The Bean frowned; he was the subject of a joke. That didn't please him. At least he was getting their wishes. He looked up to the Void again, the methodical beating of the Chaos Heart ringing in his ears. It had gotten to a point where he heard the Chaos Heart more clearly than his regular heart. He saw Dimentio's reflection in the glass covering the news, smiling eerily at him. A sudden anger began to build up in him. He didn't like being laughed at, he didn't like being toyed with, he didn't like being betrayed, and he didn't like being so afraid of everything; he was afraid he was going to kill his allies or be killed, he was afraid he was going to lose who he was...and, even though he hated to admit it, he was afraid of Dimentio. Unable to control himself, he spat at the reflection and tore the whole news sign out of the ground with his Headgear, hurling it behind him. A group of Toads scattered as it came down, looking at him, frightened. He stalked off and sat down against the gate separating Peach's Castle from the rest of the town.

'Stupid fink-rats and their wishes of stupidity...' he spat. 'Stupid jester of stupidness...' He sighed and took his Headgear off his head, commanding it to deactivate, and put it in his cube. The Bean rubbed his head gingerly, trying to calm himself down. It wasn't working. 'Pah!' he groaned, smacking his head against the wall in fury. He soon regretted it. 'O Great Cackletta...' he muttered. 'Your loyal toady has loneliness...again.' He found himself looking at the sky, wishing for the umpteenth time that he could be with her once again. 'I do not have caring about activities of villainy...only to be your loyal toady.' He hid his face in his hands.

'Fawful? You alright?'

Fawful didn't look up at Mimi. 'I am fine,' he said. 'I am fine with much of the happies and chortles and laughter which is accompanying said happies! All is being well with me!'

Mimi sat down beside him. 'Are you alright?' she repeated in a more commanding tone. Fawful sighed and shook his head. 'Why?'

'I have loneliness at the absence of my mistress...' He sniffed. 'Cackletta has the deadly deceasedness and I am here being preyed upon by silly jesters who are dressing in dresses not befitting of them.'

'Hey, it's a poncho!' Mimi shot, then paused. 'Sorry. I guess I'm used to defending him with that. It was a pretty common insult from Nastasia.' An image of Dimentio's embarrassment passed through Fawful's mind and he couldn't help but chuckle. 'And you know, what's wrong with dresses?' She looked him up and down. 'I think you'd just be ADORABLE in one!' She grinned.

'ACK!' Fawful choked. 'I am not liking the image that is being imagined in my mind!'

'Tee hee!' Mimi giggled. 'You're such a drama queen.'

'I am not being a queen of dramaticalness!' Fawful was reddening.

'Is that even a real word?'

'That is being to the left of the object of conversation!'

'"Besides the point."'

'EVER OF THE WHAT!'

'You know, I just bought a new dress. Guess you didn't notice.' She smiled. 'Oh no, not yet!' she said, covering his eyes as he tried to see it.

'Mimi, you are having the smudging of my glasses!'

'Then close your eyes!'

Fawful shut them, then took the thick glasses off his face and cleaned them with his red cloak. 'Why are you forcing me to do things of trivialness?' he snapped.

'Just _wait_,' Mimi groaned. A moment passed and Fawful put his glasses back on his face. 'Alright, open your eyes.'

Fawful opened them to see Mimi in a dazzling white dress that flowed down to below her knees. It was a sleeveless dress and she wore slightly darker white gloves with long sleeves that went up to her elbows. Her legs were bare and she wore white shoes very fit for long distance walking (which was a very strange thing to pair with the dress if you didn't know she was on a long journey). Around her neck was a necklace of golden pearls. She took out her hair bands and put them away, letting her green hair fall down her back. She smiled and looked at the Beanish boy through her shining ruby-coloured eyes. Fawful's mouth hung open and all he could say was a short 'Uuuhh...'

'How do I look?' she asked. When he didn't respond, she added, 'Blink once for "nice," twice for "cute," and three times for "amazingly gorgeous."'

Fawful blinked three times.

'Oh Fawful, you're the sweetest thing!' she gushed, giving him a huge hug, which Fawful thoroughly enjoyed. 'I was getting tired of the game old dress.'

'You...uh...' He paused, unsure of what to say. 'I have...uh...'

'Just tell me I'm pretty,' Mimi chuckled.

'You are exuding much of the pretties,' Fawful blurted out quickly, causing the butterflies in his stomach to flutter more.

Mimi hugged him and it felt like the butterflies were multiplying. 'There, that wasn't so hard.' She let go. 'Come on, we should make our way back to Merlon's place. Everyone else should be there by now.' Fawful got up and started walking. 'Why's a sign just laying around in the middle of the road?'

'I do not have knowing,' the Bean answered innocently.

Fawful was afraid she was going to press him, but instead she said, 'You've stopped speaking in third person.'

Fawful frowned. 'I had the speaking in the person that was third?'

'Yeah, didn't you ever notice?'

'No.'

'Huh.'

'Merlon, we need to talk,' were the first words Fawful heard when he walked in and got settled, from Mario.

'What about?' the sage asked.

'The prophecy.'

Merlon frowned. 'Prophecy? What prophecy?'

Blumiere scowled. 'Enough of the dumb talk. Merlon, Nolrem, you might as well stop spying on us. I can feel your presences.'

A moment passed before the two sages from Flipside and Flopside flipped in from the Other Dimension. 'I was afraid of that,' Nolrem huffed.

'Merlon!' Mario growled. 'Nolrem! What were you _doing_?'

'Discussing things with our Toad Town counterpart here,' Flipside's Merlon answered.

'Why did you hide from us?' Peach asked.

'We didn't want to reveal the prophecy to you,' Toad Town's Merlon replied, 'or to give you questions we didn't have the answers to.'

'Well we already know what the prophecy says,' Mimi said. 'Dimentio already told us we're doomed to fail.'

'Doomed to fail?' all three repeated.

'I don't understand,' Nolrem said, voicing all their feelings.

'"The Void will swallow all,"' Luigi cited. 'Isn't that what they both say?'

There was a moment of silence before the three mages smiled. 'Heroes, the prophecy has changed. It no longer foretells your doom.'

'WHAT DOES IT SAY?' everyone in the room asked in different manners.

Flipside's prophet fetched the book.

_While the book of darkness shall be proven false and the Dark One shall be killed, he shall rise again from the land of souls to wreak havoc among the living. He shall seek the aid of a Child of Beans, and the Chaos Heart shall come again, opening the Void, but in the end, the Chaos Heart shall choose two vessels in which to store its power: The Dark One and the Child of Beans. The Heroes, joined by the Child of Beans, shall bring to life the Purity Heart and the Void shall close. However, before the end of the great battle, the Heroes will know one fact above all:_

_Darkness breeds despair._

Their eyes travelled down the page at different speeds, reading the things that already happened before finally ending at the vague warning. 'Well...it says we'll win at least,' Timpani noted.

Fawful reached the very end of the text and froze. Mimi did the same a moment later. _Darkness breeds despair_. They both mouthed the final sentence with a horrible feeling of foreboding. 'That last line doesn't give me a good feeling,' Mimi said.

'Could the darkness be the Chaos Heart?' Bowser ventured.

'No,' Blumiere muttered, shaking his head. 'If it was it would be more specific. It's the darkness in our hearts...' There was a pause. 'Things are going to happen. Horrible things.'

'Well...a lot of bad things have already happened, haven't they?' Luigi stuttered. 'Maybe we're gonna get good luck from here on in!' He forced a smile, but no one else did.

Blumiere snatched the book. 'Give that to me,' he ordered, despite already holding it in his hands. Merlon grumbled. The prince flipped to the back page and ran his hand over it. 'Show me your sister prophecy...' he commanded quietly. 'Show me what my brother has at his disposal.' He frowned at the word _brother_. Soon words appeared on the page.

_While the book of darkness shall be proven false and the Dark One shall be killed, he shall rise again from the land of souls to wreak havoc among the living. He shall seek the aid of a Child of Beans, and the Chaos Heart shall come again, opening the Void, but in the end, the Chaos Heart shall choose two vessels in which to store its power: The Dark One and the Child of Beans. The Child of Beans will aid the Heroes in their quest to seal the Void, but all shall be for naught: the Dark One shall defeat them and the Void shall swallow all. However, despite his victory, the Dark One will learn one fact before the end of his trials:_

_Darkness breeds despair._

'So they're doing what they were supposed to all along then,' Blumiere mused. 'Why did they waver, I wonder?'

'Waver?' Bowser repeated. 'What the heck are you blabbering about?'

'Why did they _both_ foretell the same end before?' Flipside's Merlon explained to him. 'I believe I know why.' Everyone looked at him questioningly. 'It's the Chaos Heart. It all comes down to it.' Merlon crossed his arms from under his cloak. 'It shouldn't exist, by all accounts. It was deleted along with the Pure Hearts, and both prophecies were rendered obsolete. However, Dimentio removed their texts in order to destroy the seal on the Dark Prognosticus and release his father, clearing the way for another possible prophecy. Then, when the Chaos Heart was created, yet no Purity Heart, it confused the Prognosticuses and made them point to doom. However yet again...' He cleared his throat. 'The Chaos Heart righted this malfunction, albeit unintentionally.'

Everyone looked confused. 'How?' Mario asked.

'The Chaos Heart has been split in two and put into two different vessels, one of whom stands among us.' Eyes briefly flickered to Fawful and back, making the Beanish boy shift in place. 'The Heart was, really, never meant to handle conditions like this, and started trying to secure its own survival on both sides, creating tension in the already unstable prophecies. The Chaos Heart changed the prophecies with...' He tugged on his cloak. 'A death. The death of Nastasia, caused by the Dark Prognosticuses very bringer of destruction, paved the way for what we see here. Had Dimentio secured the whole Chaos Heart, or had Fawful not been possessed by it, Dimentio would have taken control of Nastasia and obliterated you all. This I saw in the future, until Nastasia died.'

Everyone stared. 'You're...you're joking right?' Mimi said in disbelief. 'You're saying Nassy's death was a...was a _good thing?_'

'On the right level...yes, it was. Otherwise we would all be dead.'

Fawful was as shocked as everyone. _The Chaos Heart had the...saving of us all?_ He couldn't believe it.

_'Yes,' _a voice inside his head said. _'I believe I deserve thanks.'_

Fawful jumped and gave a yelp of surprise. Everyone looked at him. 'Er...' He tried to think of an excuse. 'Electricity that is having a static charge had the zapping of me. I give sorries.' They returned to Merlon, inquiring about their next move and asking more questions.

_Who are you?_ Fawful hissed to the voice in his mind.

_'I am he who resides in you...Fawful.'_

Fawful's heart gave an uncomfortable pound. _The Chaos Heart?_

_'Yes. I am the Chaos Heart, the half that resides in you.'_

The Bean frowned. _Why the talking and speaking to me?_

Another pound. _'I can give you power, you know. The power to crush Dimentio.'_ Fawful's heart skipped a beat and he froze. _'I see I have your interest. No, I am not on Dimentio's side anymore than yours,'_ the Chaos Heart added before Fawful could ask. _'I have made this inquiry to him before, and he took it. Now it is your turn, Fawful. Take my power, use it...then craft your perfect world.'_

Visions passed through his mind: visions of him, all powerful, reigning over everything, a perfect world dedicated to him. He saw a monument to Cackletta in his own castle, with Mimi at his side and the Mario Brothers bound in chains, tortured, killed...

He forced these ideas out of his head.

_'Does this displease you? I thought you were a villain. I thought you longed for this.'_

Fawful did. Fawful longed for it more than anything. He felt the villainous instincts coming back, and for the first time he considered just laying waste to everyone in this room. He could get them by surprise. He had explosives and other weapons, and if that failed, the Chaos Heart.

But he couldn't! Mimi would never forgive him.

_'Ah love. Such a pure emotion. It fuels so much, yet brings so much pain. It brings happiness and grief, bliss and suffering. Dimentio is a coward for hiding from his. You, on the other hand...you can embrace it, make it yours! Your love can blossom in your perfect world. Mimi wouldn't mind. Just submit yourself to me...and all your goals will be realized.'_

Fawful was tense. He felt his heart pounding and pounding, sending the dark energy through his body. This was too tempting...but he also felt something else, a feeling in his mind, clouding his reasoning. The Chaos Heart was tempting him for a reason...and it couldn't be good. He could feel the shadowy veins growing, spreading further across his body, changing him just as Dimentio had been changed.

_'Submit yourself to my darkness...DO IT!'_

Fawful screamed and pounded his fists against Toad Town's Merlon's table, making the crystal ball shudder. Everyone jumped. 'OBJECTIVE!' Fawful shouted. 'IT IS WHAT?'

There was a deathly silence in the room. Blumiere shifted, sensing the darkness curling off of the boy, but he didn't say anything. 'Well!' all three sages said at once.

'Someone's eager to set out,' Nolrem noted. 'Recklessness will kill you someday.'

'Ahem!' Toad Town's Merlon coughed. 'Well, you'll be happy to know your next destination is close to this very town.' He gestured to a wall in his house. 'Shooting Star Summit, out that way.'

'WHAT?' everyone exclaimed.

'How could we not have known it before?' Luigi yelled. 'Why didn't you tell us?'

'Easy, easy!' Merlon warned. 'Don't lose your heads. I didn't tell you because I only just realized it now.' He cleared his throat. 'You seek not an object, but a person, and now that you have the Beanstar and the Cobalt Star, that will be enough to summon this person.'

'Who is this...person?' Mario asked.

'That even I don't know. Just go to the summit and use your items. They will bring her to you.'

As everyone started to leave, Fawful heard the voice again. _'I will never leave you,'_ it said, almost maliciously. _'The darkness in your heart will always exist...even when I am not here.'_ Fawful walked out the door, trying to ignore it, but then it said something that sent chills down his spine. _'Your darkness will overshadow everything Fawful. Someone will come to meet you soon...someone close. Allow me to help you kill her when the time comes. Ha ha.'_

Fawful shuddered at the laughter, and a sudden, unexplainable image of Cackletta passed through his mind.


	22. Chapter 22: A Toady No Longer

Chapter 22: A Toady No Longer

Dimentio

Dimentio sighed.

He stood at the end of the hall of his memories, looking up at the tapestry of him on his throne. The room was silent; if a pin had been dropped, you would have heard it.

'Memories...' he muttered. 'Hopes and dreams spring from them. Memories of triumph. Memories of tragedy. Everything comes from memories.' He turned and began to walk down the hall to the door looking at all the tapestries. Fragments from his own past hung on all the walls: places and people, all hidden under the symbolism of their own memories. Those people...they were his family in another time. But that time had passed. To realize his dream of a perfect world he had been forced to shatter his family apart. His family...and his love.

He stopped as he passed the tapestry of the giant spider and the girl. The picture, of course, symbolized Mimi. He turned and stared up at it expectantly, as if he thought it was going to come alive. It didn't. The only thing it did was bring him pain, a stabbing pain right in his heart. He could hear the Chaos Heart in his mind, speaking to him.

_'Dimentio, Dimentio, my creator...'_ it said, sighing like him. _'Why do you flee from these emotions of yours when they are perfectly natural?'_

The Heart had grown far more talkative lately, speaking to him in his dreams as the dark veins snaked their way further and further across his skin. They had begun going down his arms and legs now a bit, which worried him. This had never happened before, and was likely a result of the Chaos Heart's hold on Fawful and him. The magician theorized that it was the manner of its creation that did it. The first time it was a result of the forced marriage of the fair human, Princess Peach, and the monstrous Koopa, King Bowser. This paradox of Fate caused the Chaos Heart to come into existence, out of exactly that: chaos. This time, however, it was created using the blood of Dimentio and the surviving members of his family, giving enough energy to create the Heart again. This gave it mortal traits, and now it was speaking to him, spreading across his body.

_It is not going to control me, _Dimentio thought to himself. _I am my own being. I am controlled by my own power, not its._

_'And yet you've used mine for millennia,'_ the Chaos Heart said. It was tuned out.

Dimentio winced from the pain, staring up at the tapestry. He tugged at his poncho and shirt as his heart thudded heavily. He kept thinking back to his confrontation with Rosabella, back to the love that had briefly lit up his heart before the crippling sorrow had brought him to his knees. It had been so...fulfilling.

Dimentio punched the wall, instantly regretting it as his knuckles cracked upon impact. He withdrew his hand and tried to wave off the pain. _Why is this so painful?_ he thought.

_'I blocked your love,' _the Chaos Heart told him. _'Would you like me to give it back to you?'_

'NO!' Dimentio roared aloud. His voice echoed off the walls. _No,_ he told the artefact. _I am done with love, forever._

_'You are stubborn, jester.'_

Dimentio snarled. _You know why I can't turn back._ All he got was a laugh. He yelled again and pounded on the wall, the tapestry shuddering on its hold.

A hand gripped his shoulder and he spun around to face the red eyes of Esmine. The jester's masked face regarded her coldly. 'You're making a lot of noise,' the girl said. 'People are beginning to worry about you.'

'I'm fine,' Dimentio lied.

'You're assaulting the wall Dimentio. Something's up.' She smiled and moved closer to him. 'Tell Esmine all about it.'

He pushed her away. 'I need no counselling Esmine.' He walked down the hall, leaving Mimi's tapestry with the only female in the entire castle.

'It's about Mimi isn't it?'

Dimentio froze. 'What?'

'This tapestry right here, this is about Mimi. You were staring at it, punching it. It's about her.'

The magician turned around. 'How do you know about Mimi?'

Esmine smiled. 'I've been reading.'

'Her diary I suppose?' The look on Esmine's face told him yes. She crossed her arms and gave him a look. 'I cannot love, Esmine. That in itself should tell you I am unaffected.'

'That's it then. You _want_ to love her.'

'That's a lie,' Dimentio growled. 'Love is for the weak.'

'Whatever. I think you're crazy.'

'If you didn't love your brother you wouldn't regret his death every day.'

Now it was Esmine's turn to freeze. 'That...you're...'

Dimentio smiled. 'Love is useless and brings pain. You know that.' He walked past her, snapping his fingers. 'Love, love, oh love. Why do you have to ravage this woman? All because of the death of a little brat!'

Esmine grabbed his wrist and spun him around, punching at his face. Dimentio grabbed her arm, smiling. 'You're a monster!' she screamed. 'How dare you talk about him like that?'

'And yet you're...ah, "smitten" with me? Interesting yet again.' This just deepened her scowled. Dimentio sighed. 'Forgive me, Esmine.' He let go of her wrist. 'I was merely revolting against your own words.' Her scowled lightened. 'I've said it before: trust is the tasty paste that holds civilization together! Trust and good manners, of course. Let us put this behind us.' He bowed.

Esmine clenched her fists. 'My brother,' she whispered, 'was not a brat. Don't you ever talk about him like that again.'

'I swear, I shall not.' He dusted off his hands on his poncho. 'Incidentally Esmine, what did your brother look like? I would like to have a better idea of him.'

'He...' Esmine swallowed. 'He had red hair, like me, pretty short, and he wasn't tall. He had really grey eyes though, and skin like mine.'

Dimentio didn't answer at first. His heart suddenly pounded harder. 'Thank you, I can envision him far easier now.' He turned to exit.

'Oh, and Dimentio?' He turned. Esmine's eyes were glowing again and she was giving him a small smile. 'I think you need to pay me back for that, don't you?'

Dimentio turned again. 'Goodbye Esmine.'

The door closed behind him. He floated along, distracted, thinking back to the dimension he had found the girl who would become Mimi in. He thought the events that took place in Esmine's past matched up and now he was certain they did. It seemed the boy had come back to haunt him through his sister. Interesting how karma seemed to do that to him. It was a shame the boy had found the Dark Prognosticus. If he hadn't, he might have lived. Then again, Dimentio would probably have killed him anyway.

He made a quick stop by Mimi's room and confiscated her diary. Esmine would have to go without reading material from now on.

Fawful

'Fawful? What's going on?'

The Bean was leaning against a tree near Peach's Castle, clutching his heart. He suddenly felt a horrible wave of grief pass through him and he fought back a sob. Everyone else had walked ahead and Mimi went back to check on Fawful. 'Heart has pain...' he muttered.

'Physical or emotional?' She sounded very worried, which made Fawful feel a little better.

'Both.' He winced.

'How's the Heart?'

'It has pain!' Fawful growled. 'Am I needing to have the repeating of everything that I am saying?'

'I meant the Chaos Heart, Fawful.'

'Oh. Um...' Should he tell her what it said?

'Hold still.' She began to remove his cloak.

'Mimi!' the boy exclaimed.

'Don't be such a baby Fawful, I just want to see the veins.' She took off his top and her eyes widened. 'Oh my...'

Fawful looked down and what he saw took his breath away. The veins had extended across his entire chest and stomach and started down his legs and arms. Where the veins thinned in his body, the shadowy ones did too. It was as if someone had turned his blood pure black. The pulses of grey had gotten more powerful, and with each heartbeat it was like his soul was shaking. 'I have darkness...' he whispered.

'Yes you do...' Mimi breathed.

A moment passed before they decided that they'd better go find the group again. Fawful got fully dressed and they started off towards their allies. After a few moments Fawful decided to speak. 'Mimi,' he said. She turned and he told her about the Chaos Heart and what it had said to him.

'That...doesn't sound good,' she noted nervously. 'Blumiere never told us about that happening...'

'We should be asking him when we are having time that is free.'

'So never then?' she replied bitterly. 'We'll be lucky if we even survive this Underwhere of an adventure.'

They rejoined the group and were on the way to Shooting Star Summit. The bridge to the summit was in view when Fawful forced them to stop.

'Wait!' he cried. 'Make with the stopping!'

'What is it?' Mario asked.

Fawful had a very bad feeling, and it wasn't just one of those times when you feel like you're being watched. Fawful _knew_ they were being watched. He took out his blaster and fired a shot at a spot in the air.

'Oh my!' came a familiar voice from nowhere. 'I believe _that_ is a very bad sign.' Dimentio warped into the visible spectrum, a smile on his face. 'You've begun to see through my invisibility!'

'This isn't the time, creep!' Mimi snarled.

'Ah, I disagree, my dear. This is most certainly the time.' He spun around in the air, grinning widely. He spread his arms wide, looking at them all. 'It is a time for happiness and sadness, for reunion and past memories. But most of all, it is a time for...MAGIC!' He waved his arms, magical energy shining in the air. The entire world fell away in squares to reveal the green walls of Dimension D. 'Welcome to the past memories of you all, heroes!'

'Don't you think this is more than you can handle Dimentio?' Mario asked. 'There's one of you and ten of us.'

'Well yes, that is quite an uneven matchup I must agree.' Dimentio was still smiling. 'Any sensible person would agree that it would be suicide to attempt such a brawl. Anyone without a plan of course,' he added.

'What're you talking about?' Blumiere demanded.

'Doesn't matter,' O'Chunks grunted. ''Cause he's gonna get tha chunkin' of 'is life!'

'Oh naivety, I love it so.' Dimentio rubbed his hands together. 'Senseless brutes like you are so much easier to deal with when you don't know what's going on.'

'Then what _is_ going on?' Mario growled.

'A reunion of course! A reunion with a new minion of mine...and an old enemy of yours, Mario and Luigi!' Dimentio grinned widely and clapped his hands. 'Come forth, my minion!'

A brilliant flash of light exploded above them all, blinding everyone in the room and reflecting off the green walls of the small dimension, the patterns standing out brightly. Bolts of lightning shot down from the roof of the room, thundering with sound as they struck the floor.

'Well well,' Dimentio muttered. 'A flair for the dramatic.'

Another flash of light revealed a form silhouetted against the shine. Dimentio's minion descended to the ground, sending forth a cackle that sent chills down Fawful's spine and made his breath catch in his throat; he remembered it from long ago.

'EEYAH HA HA!' The laugh was raspy, like the stereotypical witch's. The person laughing didn't stray far from the image. She was old and wrinkled her bean green skin showing her age. She wore a purple dress that went down below her feet, outlined with yellow and cut in a jagged pattern around the bottom. A lighter purple cape was draped around her body. Fangs protruded from her mouth as she grinned wickedly and her catlike eyes, with purple sclera and yellow irises, gazed over them all with a hungry glare. On her forehead was a round blue gem, and two long tuffs of purple hair stuck up from her head, bound by a strip of yellow around the middle. She spread her arms wide, revealing that her cape was actually big, black, bat-like wings that extended from the underside of her arms. 'Look who's back...Super Mario Brothers! Eeyah ha ha!'

Fawful's eyes were wide with shock, his skin suddenly clammy with sweat. He was shaking where he stood, mouth dry. Mimi snorted, fighting back laughter and walked up to the front of the group. 'This is your new minion? Wow, you must be desperate, wading through the elderly homes now.'

'WHAT?' the Bean witch snarled. 'You impudent little brat! I should blast you to pieces!'

'Bring it you old hag!' the green girl shot back. 'I've fought worse than you!' Fawful, honestly, would have taken Mimi down then and there and showed her how powerful he really was for that insult had he not been petrified from shock.

'Oh boy,' Mario groaned, smacking a palm against his face.

'This was unexpected...' Dimentio said.

'You'll regret that, girl!' She was livid. 'I'll show you why I'm called...' Her voice trailed off.

'Well?' Mimi asked. 'What do they call you?'

She was shoved aside as their enemy gazed through all the unfamiliar faces and settled on one familiar one. 'You in the back,' she said. 'Come up here.' Fawful tensed and didn't move. 'I said get up here!' He jumped and gulped before slowly moving ahead of everyone and into her view. Her eyes widened briefly before settling into confusion. 'You...' she said. 'What're you doing with...them?'

Fawful just stared up at her, shaking. After a few moments of tense silence, he did something nobody had ever seen him do: he dropped to his knees and grovelled at her feet. 'O Great Cackletta!' he cried, his head to the floor. 'I am a bad toady!'

Everyone was shocked. Mario and Peach frowned uncomfortably, Luigi fidgeted where he stood, Bowser snorted with distaste, Blumiere, Timpani, and O'Chunks all looked very confused, and Mimi's eyes were wide and her mouth hung open. Dimentio was laughing hysterically. The one who was the most shocked, however, was Midbus. Seeing his great and powerful master bow at the feet of another person was so horrifying to him that he stepped back and almost lost his footing. 'Lord...Lord Fawful?' he gasped.

'_Lord_ Fawful?' Cackletta questioned. Fawful looked much most impressive than she had last remembered, with the new cloak and black shirt, pants, gloves, and shoes. This was reflected a little on her face, though she was still surprised at the title Midbus had given him and confused more than anything. If he was a lord to someone, why exactly was he bowing at her feet?

'What in the world are you doing with _these_ losers?' she demanded.

'I...I...' Fawful couldn't get words out.

'Who _are_ you?' Mimi asked the old witch.

'I am Cackletta, the most powerful witch in the world!'

'Except that we beat you,' Luigi said. He yelped as he was struck with a bolt of lightning.

'Cackletta...' Mimi's face lit up in recognition. 'No way...!'

'And Fawful is my loyal minion.' She said it without a single mote of pride in her voice. 'Or he was. I'm not sure _what_ he is now. Which brings me to my question...' She looked down at the little Beanish kid. 'What in the world are you doing here?' All Fawful did was whimper.

'Ah, Cackletta,' Dimentio cut in. 'Do you remember your job?'

'Kill the heroes, go free,' she answered. 'I remember.'

'Yes, that is correct. Your job is to kill the heroes, and I think you should start with the most important hero in the entire group.' He pointed at Fawful. 'It's quite a change since you've seen him last, really.'

'Do you mean to tell me that...?' Her eyes widened. 'You're a...a...'

'A hero, yes!' Dimentio finished dramatically. 'He strayed away from the side of evil to those _dreadful_ goody-two-shoes.' He sighed.

The Bean witch's face melted away from confusion and gave way to complete hatred. 'You _TRAITOR!_' she screamed, hitting him with a bolt of lightning. Fawful didn't scream from the pain; he was completely silent as his body was flung from where he had been kneeling and rolled to a stop. 'A _hero?_' his former mistress shrieked with disgust, attacking him again.

'Fawful!' Mimi cried. She turned toward Dimentio, fury in her eyes. 'Why are you doing this?'

'How else could I?' the jester laughed innocently. 'Cackletta's the only person Fawful wouldn't fight back against, and to be honest, it was _so_ nice catching up with her. I learned so many things about Fawful. Ah ha ha.'

'"Wouldn't fight back?"' Mimi repeated. 'Fawful has to!'

'Ah, but look at him now.' Dimentio giggled.

Mimi did look, and was absolutely horrified. Cackletta was assaulting him with a barrage of lightning attacks while Fawful just laid there taking it all, completely quiet aside from an occasional moan of pain or laboured apology. It made her heart break, looking at it. It wasn't really because her friend was being hurt. Even if she hated seeing it, risk was involved, and they had all been hurt on this adventure. It was _who_ was doing the hurting. Fawful held his mistress in such high esteem, and now he was taking her rage at full force with no way to talk himself out of it. The way he just took it all with no complaints, even going so far as to _apologize_ to her...it was too much.

'Cackletta!' she called, pleading. 'Stop this! He doesn't deserve it!'

'Hmph!' the sorceress snorted with disgust. 'You've even got your pathetic _friends_ sticking up for you!' She zapped him again. 'My _loyal toady_ was it? Where is your loyalty now?'

'Sorry...' the Bean boy muttered, his voice weak from the abuse.

Mimi clenched her fists, tears running down her cheeks. 'This isn't right! Stop it now!' Without another thought, she ran at Cackletta, shining red Rubees appearing around her.

Fawful's former mistress turned to Mimi. 'Hah! You think you can beat a villain of my calibre?' She raised her arm and a bolt of lightning came down. Mimi strafed to the side, dodging it. Cackletta let another one loose and it was deflected by a Rubee, creating a black mark in the ceiling.

Mimi jumped up. 'I might not look it,' she said, 'but I was a villain too!' She shot all her gems at the witch, who snapped her fingers and blasted them all out of the air. Mimi landed and flipped into the Other Dimension and out of sight.

'Wh-what?' Cackletta gasped, instantly recovering from her disbelief that Mimi could have been a villain.

'Lay off my friend!' the girl yelled, Rubees flying out of nowhere. She reappeared and conjured up more. 'Or you'll regret it!'

'Insolent child!' Cackletta growled, her claw-like hands sparkling with electricity.

'Bring it!' Mimi challenged, then prepared to fire all her gems.

'STOP!' Fawful immediately jumped up and gripped Mimi's arm hard.

Her Rubees fell to the floor and vanished. 'Fawful...?' she said. 'What're you...?'

A much larger bolt of lightning got them both. Mimi screeched in pain and dropped to the floor and Fawful was brought to his knees, fighting back a scream. 'Eeyah ha ha! You heroes are all the same. Even you...my _former_ toady. You're just like the rest. You make me sick.'

Fawful had listened to his mistress' insults without ever thinking her wrong, but this time was different. He got up and faced her, his face going neutral. 'What...?' he asked.

'I said you're no different than those Mario Brothers, Fawful!' she growled. 'You're the same as them all!'

A moment passed as he processed this thought. _You're the same as the Mario Brothers..._ Then, everything changed. Fawful clenched his huge teeth, giving his mistress a deadly glare. His fists were balled tightly. 'You...' he panted, still dizzy from the lightning. 'Wrong...'

Cackletta's eyes widened. 'I beg your pardon?'

'You are _wrong!_' Fawful screamed. 'You are wrong like the ramblings of a senile Koopa who has much age and is not knowing his right from his left!'

'You...' The witch returned his glare. 'How DARE you?'

'I do not have heroicness!' Fawful yelled, suddenly angry. He had been waiting years for her to return to him, and this is how he was greeted? THIS was how his loyalty and dedication paid off? All of his renowned fury was boiling to the surface, and he could feel the Chaos Heart's power awakening once more, but he didn't even care. 'I have had the scheming, and plotting, and destroying!' he roared as ferociously as he could with his high voice. 'I have had the creating of mind control devices, and Mushrooms, and an army of grandness! Fawful has a minion of loyalty! All for Fawful, all for his rule!' Now that Mimi pointed it out, he noticed third person speech was creeping back into his words. Not that it really mattered. 'I have greatness!' he bellowed, his old pride coming back. 'I have power! I have FURY!' He threw his hands up. 'I AM LORD FAWFUL! I AM RULING THE WORLD!' He stopped, his arms back at his sides, panting. 'Fawful is DONE with being a pathetic _toady!_'

'Fawful...' Cackletta breathed. 'I'm impressed.'

The boy started. '...really?'

'Yes. If only you had this pride when you were my minion. You could have accomplished so much.'

'ENOUGH!' Dimentio roared. 'Get on with it! Kill him!'

Cackletta crossed her arms. 'I was mistaken. I won't kill Fawful.'

The magician hung in the air for a moment, stunned. 'You..._won't_, kill him...?' He smiled suddenly, the masked grin twitching. 'You...aha...ah ha ha ha...' He broke out into a gale of insane laughter, echoing off the walls of Dimension D. 'Oh that's just _perfect!_ Absolutely _wonderful!_ Eee hee hee...' He sighed. 'No, really, you're going to kill him.' He snapped his fingers and Cackletta dropped to her knees, her hands tightly clutching her head and groaning.

'Cackletta!' Fawful cried, running to her side.

'F-Faw...ful...' she moaned. A glowing Floro Sprout was growing out of her head.

'Oh, the wonders of mind control,' Dimentio said. 'Now, Cackletta...KILL HIM!' He snapped his fingers again and she stood up, her face staring on in horror.

'I can't...move my...'

'Yes, your body is in my control now! Ah ha ha ha ha!'

Cackletta's face was contorted in rage. 'You...insolent...'

Another snap of the fingers from Dimentio. 'Attack, my minion!'

Fawful jumped out of the way of a bolt of lightning. 'Cackletta!' he cried again. 'Have control!'

'I can't!' she yelled. Her mind and voice were her own, but her body responded under Dimentio's control. She fired more bolts, which Fawful dodged, pleading for her to fight against it.

Mimi picked herself off the ground. 'Fawful...unk...you have to fight!'

'I cannot battle The Great Cackletta!' he lamented. He finally yelled out in pain as a bolt hit him, knocking him to the ground.

'Fawful...fight me now!' Cackletta gripped him around his throat tightly, lifting him off the ground. 'You have to, or you'll die!'

'Oh this is just precious!' Dimentio laughed. Mario jumped at him and he dodged. 'Ah, finally into the fight Mario? And...everybody else too I see.' Everyone else, Mimi included, looked ready to beat the stuffing out of the jester. 'Well, this couldn't be avoided.' He waved his arms and every person was suddenly engulfed in a glowing box. 'Why don't you sit back and watch the show? I want to see your faces when the boy gets killed.'

'Fawful, fight her!' Mimi screamed, her voice slightly muffled.

'C-can't...' Fawful gasped through Cackletta's tight grip.

'Fawful...this is a test. The last test. You have to prove to me you're better than me!'

'Not...better...' he wheezed.

Her grip tightened, and Fawful got the feeling it wasn't entirely the Floro Sprout's decision. 'Why do you think I've been training you? You need to outdo me...you _can_ outdo me. I know that...I've SEEN that, long ago!' Fawful just shook his head sadly. 'I guess I was wrong then...' His mistress sighed. 'You're just...a toady, forever. Everything you said was a lie.'

Midbus roared, pounding his fists against the box. 'Lord Fawful, fight! Win!'

'Are you going to let your minion down?' Cackletta asked. 'I never did, did I?'

'N-no...' Fawful's sight was blurring. He could feel his brain shutting down, and suddenly his life was flashing before his eyes. It soon stopped at a memory from a very long time ago.

_'Fawful,' Cackletta said, her voice echoing slightly off the walls of their lair._

_'Yes, Great Cackletta?' Fawful was merely four at the time, and stared up at her like she was Grambi himself._

_'Do you know what awaits you when I am gone?'_

_Fawful frowned, confused. 'Gone?'_

_'Dead. What will you do when I die?'_

_The Bean boy shuddered. 'I do not have the thinking of that, Great Cackletta.'_

_'Why not?'_

_His voice trailed away. 'Scared...' he finally answered._

_'That's a problem.'_

_'Whying?'_

_'Because you need to know what to do when it happens. You can't be a toady forever.'_

_'Oh, but I _will_ be a toady forever! I will be the loyal toady of you, O Great Cackletta!'_

_'No!' the witch suddenly yelled. Fawful jumped and whimpered, scared. 'No, you can't say that. You can't be a minion forever. That's why you're my minion in the first place.' Fawful looked confused. 'You're going to need to move on. Grow up. Leave the...' She took a breath. 'Leave the nest, so to speak. You're going to be better than me. Greater than me. I can feel it, see it in your eyes.'_

_'But...I am not wanting to be greater than you,' Fawful said slowly. He had a hard time grappling with what his mistress was saying._

_'You _will,_ Fawful. If you don't, I'll be very disappointed in you. Do you remember what I do when you disappoint me?'_

_Fawful yelped. 'Yes, Great Cackletta, I have understand!'_

Suddenly, everything was clear, and Fawful felt a weight lift off his shoulders. _I am Lord Fawful! I am ruling the world!_ His hand slowly moved down to his holster.

'Goodbye Fawful...' Cackletta muttered.

'Goodbye Fawful!' Dimentio cackled. 'It was nice knowing you!'

'No,' Fawful said firmly, pointing the gun at Cackletta's stomach.

Surprise flickered across the witch's face. 'You made a gun?'

The mad genius said nothing in response, just fired. Cackletta howled in pain and released her grip on him, stepping back and clutching her stomach. 'ACK! What does that thing fire?'

'Concentrated electro-purified energy couplets that have the searing of cells, making the respiration decline!' he answered.

'Let's pretend I understand that nonsense!' she barked.

Fawful took out his storage cube and pressed a few buttons, making his Headgear appear. He quickly placed it on his head. 'Headgear Mk. III, activate!' he commanded, and the helmet came to life.

'That one's different than I remember,' Cackletta noted.

Fawful took to the skies. 'I also have much difference than you are remembering!' He laughed, feeling more elated and alive than ever. He soared over her, firing powerful energy balls at her. Cackletta rose into the air, sending bolts of lightning down from the sky. Fawful dodged them all, catching one in his Headgear and shooting it back at her.

'Oh my,' was all she said before she was hit.

'This is worthless!' Dimentio snorted. He snapped his fingers and Cackletta's whole body was engulfed in dark energy. 'Finish him now!'

Fawful could feel the power rising in her, and it was apparent in her attacks. 'This is...incredible!' she cackled. 'I feel so powerful! EEYAH HA HA!'

He dodged and weaved, his Headgear busier than he remembered. He touched ground and flew straight at her, smashing Headgear-first into her chest. She gasped and fell to the ground, quickly getting back up. 'Cackletta!' he cried. 'The plant!'

It was wilting, turning to dust. 'Ah...it's dead,' she noted.

'...you're joking,' Dimentio sighed.

Fawful turned to Dimentio. 'Now, I will have the destroying of ACK!'

The boy fell as he was stuck by a bolt of super powered lightning from behind. 'Don't turn your back on the enemy!' the Bean woman barked. 'The test isn't over!'

'But...' He got up. 'You have freedom!'

'I told you, this is the final test. A battle to the death.' She clenched her fists, sparks flying. 'Show me your power...Lord Fawful!'

Hearing Cackletta call him by his self-declared title face-to-face filled him with excitement and inflated his chest. 'And you will be demonstrating _your_ powerful power...Mistress Cackletta!'

It was time for the confrontation Fawful had never expected: to live, he would have to kill Cackletta. There was no way around it. Somehow though, this felt right. It was time to prove himself to her, and break away from her bonds.

_I am Lord Fawful,_ he thought to himself. _A toady no longer._


	23. Chapter 23: O Mistress, Farewell

Chapter 23: O Mistress, Farewell

Fawful

There was a moment where Fawful and Cackletta, the two scourges of the Beanbean Kingdom, just stood there, staring at each other. 'This might just still work...' Dimentio muttered to himself.

Then they attacked. Cackletta flew through the air straight at him, black lightning exploding from her palms. Fawful shot straight up, sending a volley of energy attacks her way. She protected herself partly with her wings. When Fawful's barrage ceased, she flung her hands out and sent a wave of magic at him, knocking him right off his feet. He landed Headgear-first on the ground, the glass storage dome clanging from the impact and sending a vibration through Fawful's head. He tried to get up, but he was seeing three of everything. Lightning bolts raged around him, burning him with explosions. His cloak provided very little protection, but it was something. One bolt struck his Headgear right on the mechanical mouth and the whole thing shut down immediately. He plummeted and hit the floor hard, an audible _snap_ resonating throughout the whole dimension.

'Fawful, are you okay?' Mimi cried.

The Bean groaned, his legs unable to support him. 'I have wellness!' he said. He felt his legs, wincing as he got to his lower legs. He had broken a few bones. 'Ung...or perhaps unwellness.'

'How disappointing Fawful,' his former mistress huffed. 'You're already out?'

Fawful could feel the Chaos Heart's dark energy seeping into his body, magically mending his shattered bones. 'N-no...' he answered shakily. He struggled to his feet. 'I am Lord Fawful, and Lord Fawful is not giving up with that ease!'

'Unlike Toady Fawful.' Cackletta snickered.

Fawful grinned with pride. 'Correctness!' His Headgear sparked and rebooted, humming to life again. It lifted Fawful off his still-healing legs. 'It is being your turn, Cackletta!' He felt amazing; it was like an adrenaline rush times one hundred, full of energy and excitement. It was time to break his chains and move on. His heart panged with loss at the thought too; for someone who had her watch him grow for seven years of his life, it was hard to let go. Suddenly he realized how young he really was: an early teen at the very most, taking into account the blank number of years before he was found by Cackletta. She would never see him truly grow up...no matter how this battle ended. Either she would win and he would lose his life, having not surpassed her, or he would win and have to...he didn't want to think about that right now.

He couldn't. She descended into her shadow, multiplying into three and ascending back up. 'Do you remember _this_ move?' she asked. She was grinning savagely, and years ago the look would have scared the life out of Fawful, but now he stared her down and grinned as well.

'Oh yes, it has much impressiveness!' Fawful beamed. 'But _this_ is also!' His Headgear unlatched itself from his head and he landed on his feet, wincing just a little, and aimed his blaster at the nearest Bean witch. He fired, and the Headgear fired at a different one. Both of them dodged, floating in the air for brief moments before going back to the ground and each firing blasts of dark magic. Fawful was able to dodge most or reflect them back with his Headgear, but one hit him square in the chest, right over his heart. A powerful shock travelled through his body and mind, making him collapse and spasm on the ground.

_'AAAAAAARGH!'_ the Chaos Heart roared in his mind.

'Mind the Heart Cackletta, mind the Heart!' Dimentio called anxiously, wincing and gripping his chest.

'Quiet, you!' they all snapped.

Fawful pulled himself to his feet, gripping his chest just like Dimentio. 'Perhaps you should _not_ be minding the Heart!'

_'Insolent brat...'_ The Heart was not happy.

_Fawful will have the dying if you are too, so none of the worries._

_'I'll keep that in mind.'_

'I like your deal Dimentio!' the Cacklettas all cackled. 'I get more power _and_ you kill the plant! Eeyah ha ha!'

Fawful zoned back into reality just as another three blasts were about to hit him. He put his hands out to his sides and a shield of energy blocked the attacks from all directions. He strained through the effort, beads of sweat trickling down his face. He forced the shield outward and the attack dissipated.

The three Cacklettas' jaws were dropped. 'You can use...magic?'

Fawful didn't reply, just sent dark orbs of energy soaring towards the three foes. Two dodged, but one was hit dead on. His Headgear caught an orb in its mouth and fired it back at another Cackletta. Both exploded into a small army of Cackletta-esque bats, flying straight at him. He ducked into his cloak but they were still vicious, tearing holes in it and biting at his flesh.

'Your Headgear's gotten better,' his ex-mistress complimented. 'But can you get out of this one?'

He was about to say yes when one of the bats sunk its teeth into Fawful's arm. He instantly felt the deathly venom seep into his veins and his skin began to pale almost right away. 'Hck!' he gasped, collapsing to his knees again. 'V-v...ve...'

'Venom, yes!' Cackletta beamed. 'The first time you've felt my venom in your veins...and no Refreshing Herbs to cure it I imagine.'

'I am...not needing...items...' he groaned. His limbs felt like lead. He couldn't move, and his skin was paling to become more white than green. He could feel the Chaos Heart expelling the venom, destroying it, erasing it from existence, but it burned in his body like flames. He stood up, stumbling, shielding himself from the bats.

'You're stuck now.' Cackletta chuckled.

He groaned and released a wave of dark energy that dissolved the bats into nothing. He clenched his fists, dark energy flickering around him.

'_Magic_...' she grunted. 'That's not possible.'

'All is being fair in love and...war.' Fawful tapped his chest tiredly. 'I am using the Chaos Heart!'

'That's hardly fair,' she complained. Of course, she didn't point out that she was doing the same thing.

'Villainy is not being fair.'

Cackletta grinned. 'That's my toady.'

Fawful reached for his cube and took out a few silver, spherical explosives, hurling them at the witch. She shielded herself while simultaneously attacking him with more lightning. The venom was dissipating and he was getting more nimble now; the lightning barely grazed him, and when it did it was no more than a burn on his cloak. He strafed aside one and rolled, pulling out his blaster and firing harmful rings of energy at her. Fawful's Headgear flew back on to him and he flew at her. The Bean witch flung her arm out to the side and an explosion of energy hurled him upward. His Headgear opened wide and stuck him to the ceiling. Hanging there, Fawful opened fire with his blaster. Cackletta snapped her fingers and more bats were summoned, covered in a shadowy substance. They soared up at him, baring their fangs menacingly.

'Pah, patheticness!' Fawful scoffed, grinning. He summoned more of the Chaos Heart's power and snapped his fingers. All the bats instantly exploded. 'HAHAHAHA! Fun, like a sandwich possessing the decker of three!'

'Stealing my attacks...' Dimentio sighed.

Fawful dropped down and flew at Cackletta once more, swinging his hand and creating a small quake that threw her off balance. In the blink of an eye the mouth of his helmet was pressed against Cackletta's stomach.

Her eyes widened and she froze. 'You aren't seriously going to do that to your mistress are you Fawful?'

He laughed. 'You are no longer being the mistress of me, remember?' He pulled the trigger.

'AUGH!' she howled, flailing back from the blast. She gripped the burn wound on her stomach, panting. 'You've grown strong,' she said, breathless. 'I remember a time when this would have been over in no time. You've pushed me to my limits!'

Fawful crossed his arms and grinned widely. 'And I have not yet had my limits shoved!' Perhaps he was pushing it; he was tired...but not yet at his limits.

'No more games!' Cackletta growled. 'This time it's over!' She reared up and suddenly grew, all her features becoming larger, fiercer, and all together more monstrous. She let loose a primeval roar and black pulses of nothingness soared through the air and along the ground. Lightning flashed everywhere, and between dodging both attacks it was hard for Fawful to manage. He had witnessed this attack only once before: when Cackletta had fought the Mario Bros. in Woohoo Hooniversity. He shot up into the air and prepared to fire, but his Headgear was struck by a bolt of lightning yet again. Fawful muttered the curse he had heard from O'Chunks (which would have made Timpani livid) at the low droning sound of the engines failing. He fell, arms flailing, to the floor. He jumped over a speeding hole and ducked under a black orb before falling into a second hole. He could no longer see, feel, hear, smell, or taste anything. He just fell, screaming, forever and ever. Then, suddenly, he fell from the roof of Dimension D and smacked against the ground.

_'EYAHH HA HA!'_ Cackletta cackled, her voice distorted from the power. _'Can you overcome me, Fawful?' _He could barely move. He felt as if his entire body was being weighed down by an incredible force. He was practically pressed against the floor, and when he removed his Headgear and put it back in the storage cube he found it made no difference. _'I guess not. You came close, but it's over, and now you must pay the price. If you can't defeat me, then you will die by me!'_

Fawful gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. Slowly, he rose to his feet, fighting the crushing gravitation. _'Finish her Fawful!'_ the Chaos Heart urged. _'Submit to my power...become one with it! No one will stand in your way!'_

_I...am not needing your assistance!_ he shot. _Your power has only brought the sadness to me, and I will not be losing control again!_

'I...will not lose!' he cried to both the Chaos Heart and Cackletta. 'And...and I am not needing the Chaos Heart's dark power either!'

_'Heh heh. You're grasping Fawful. It's over, and I'm going to prove it, right now!'_ She reared up and flew at him, her mouth spread in a wild and satisfied smile.

'I...' Fawful tensed. 'Have...' He shut his eyes.

_'BYE-BYE! EEYAH HA _HAACK!_' _In the last second before impact, the Bean scientist raised his blaster, now set on the highest setting, and fired, searing a hole right through his mistress' body. _'Wh...wh...what...?' _She fell across his shoulder, his arm put out to catch her.

'Fury,' he finished, his mouth right next to her ear.

Cackletta was shrinking, reverting back to her normal form. 'I...l-lost...'

'Cackletta...?' Fawful's heart suddenly rose up to his throat.

'I...I...' She suddenly smiled. 'I lost to you...Fawful. It's...over.' She fell from his arm.

'Cackletta!' Fawful cried in alarm.

Dimentio stared in shock. 'I don't believe it...' he breathed. 'He actually...'

'Dimentio?'

The jester turned to face Mario, who was cracking his fists menacingly. The magical boxes must have worn off in his distraction! Dimentio jumped and prepared to snap his fingers, but Mario grabbed him by the arm and punched him square in the face. 'Ow! Uncle, uncle!'

'No Dimentio, not uncle.' Everyone else backed Mario up, looking ready to fight. 'It's time to get what you deserve.'

'Ah...I disagree.' He smiled. 'Ciao until later, Heroes of the Light Prognosticus!' He warped out and Dimension D fell away in squares, leaving them all standing before the bridge to Shooting Star Summit.

Everyone felt tension leave them. The fighting was over for now.

A squeak of alarm from Fawful brought their attention to him. He was kneeling before Cackletta, who was breathing in wheezy gasps. Fawful's heart was beating in his chest and his whole being was fraught with worry. He was shaking and he couldn't steady his hands. 'Cack...Cackletta?' he whispered with fright.

'F...Faw...ful...' She moaned in pain.

'I am here!' he choked. 'Your toady is here!'

'You aren't...my toady...anymore...'

That was right. Fawful's heart sank. 'I...I am not wanting to...to let go...' His eyes were moistening. She couldn't leave him! He needed her! He had never got on without her!

'You don't...need me, Fawful...' she coughed, as if she had read his mind. 'You sound like you've done...so much without me...'

Fawful swallowed some saliva and nodded. 'I...have done many things of evil...even when I was waiting, waiting like an elevator for the chance...'

'Waiting...good...' She coughed again. 'Never give up...'

'Cack—' He fought back a sob; he would not show weakness in front of her. 'Cackletta...I will be making you proud!'

'When will you _learn_...?'

Fawful started. 'What?'

'What you do...can't be for me...or for anyone else. It can only be for...you. Your drive...your goals...your power. All you, Fawful...'

Fawful didn't even know what his goals were anymore. He had seriously begun to question villainy. Was it worth it? Why did he do it? All until now had been for Cackletta's vengeance. What did _he_ want? Why was he to be considered "evil?" 'Cackletta, I am having a ques—'

'I can't...hold on...' his former mistress croaked. 'Fawful...I have to...to tell you...'

'What? What is it you are saying?'

'I...love you, Fawful...'

He froze, his heart skipping a beat. '...wh...what?'

'I love you...you were like the...the son I never had...' Her voice was getting weaker.

The Bean scientist couldn't breathe, let alone speak. For his entire life he had adored Cackletta, hailing her as the greatest villain ever, the most powerful witch...but there was something more there, and he had never really explored it. When he thought about her feelings...he thought he was merely a minion to him. She loved him...he was like her son! He was shaking where he knelt, his emotions running wild.

'Fawful...I killed...your real par—'

'No!' Fawful shouted. 'No no no no no! They..._you_ are the parent of me...you!'

'Fawful...'

'I am loving you too! You are being like Fawful's mother...you are being _better!_'

Cackletta closed her eyes and sighed. 'Promise me one thing...' she breathed.

Fawful gripped her dress tightly. 'Anything!' he squeaked. His eyes were moistening, and he felt like his heart, body, and soul were going to shatter any second.

'Promise me...that you will let go.'

His grip tightened. 'I...'

'_Promise_ me...'

Fawful hesitated, then answered. 'I have promise...I will let go.'

Cackletta smiled. 'I've...trained you well. Goodbye...Lord Fawful.'

'Wha...wait!' he exclaimed. 'I am having a question to ask of you!' No answer. 'A QUESTION!' he screamed, shaking her. 'I am needing to know what villainy is! I...I am needing to know!' The witch's body was limp and slowly getting colder. No blood pumped through her body. No breath escaped her lips. 'Cackletta...I need...knowledge of...'

_'The witch is dead,'_ the Chaos Heart said. _'Let your emotions flow. Feel the sadness and sorrow in your heart...and feed me.'_

That was when his control was destroyed.

Complete, utter sorrow engulfed his entire being, crippling his will. He shuddered and went limp, smacking his head on the ground and burying his face in Cackletta's dress. Tears were freely flowing, wetting the dress she so cherished. He dug deeper in and screamed, his voice muffled by the fabric. He screamed out all his sadness, and in doing so he felt like he was screaming out something else. Memories were flashing through his mind: all the amazing times he had spent with her. The training, the playing, the scheming. All the heartfelt moments he cherished that had been so rare, all the times Cackletta had taken him into her lap and sang to him, whispered comforting words to him. When a problem arose, she was there. Everything they had shared and everything they had done was passing. Even the things he had long since forgotten, his early years in her company. The bad memories were there too: memories of painful punishments and horrible words, but the good memories were so wonderful to him the bad ones didn't even matter. Every time one passed through his head his heart broke just a little bit more, as if part of his soul was leaving his body with every scene. In a sense, it was. This was a turning point for him: this was _his_ story now, not the story of Cackletta and her loyal toady...and he couldn't bare it. He wanted nothing more than to cling on to the old memories and keep Cackletta at his side. He felt like a little child, lost in a big world. The page was turning...and he would never get the years with Cackletta back, ever. He would never again hear the voice that had comforted him in his nightmares.

_'I love you...you were like the son I never had...'_

He screamed again, his voice breaking into sobs. 'CACKLETTA!' he cried into her dress. 'COME BACK! COME BACK! Come...back...' He felt empty inside...the whole world was nothing without her. He was like a hollow shell with nothing inside...because the person who had filled it was gone again. 'Mom...' he breathed, his voice cracking. 'Be returning to me...please...'

_'It's useless. That hag is gone...forever.'_

He boy let loose a cry of anguish and pounded his fist on the ground, over and over, letting his anger pile out. He didn't stop even when his knuckles started bleeding. He didn't stop when the pain was so unbearable that he couldn't take it. Cackletta was gone. Pain didn't matter anymore. _He_ didn't matter anymore. 'Hate...' he muttered. 'Hate...hate...hate...' Every pound saw a new proclamation of his hatred. 'Dimentio...you...' He flung himself up and howled all of his pain out to the entire world, a howl louder and worse than anything he had ever screamed out of his mouth. He brought both of his fists down on the ground and his head followed. He ignored the shattering pain in his knuckles, he shut out the furious ringing in his ears and the throbbing of his head. He closed his mind to the Chaos Heart's words. Everything was quiet. Everything was nonexistent. Nothing should live or exist anymore. Not even him.

'Fawful...'

The Bean didn't even react in the slightest as Mimi sat down beside him and wrapped her arms around him. Her warm touch was nothing to him. It might as well have been the cold sting of a frozen River Twygz. It was all the same. 'Gone...' he breathed sorrowfully, tears stinging his eyes.

Mimi squeezed tightly and moved in closer. 'You did the right thing. She's proud of you.'

'No...' Fawful shook his head. 'No no no no...gone. She has deadness...again. All the fault of Fawful...all the fault of me...'

'You've done what her life was dedicated to,' Mimi insisted. 'You've taken her place. Mistress Cackletta may be gone, but in her place is Lord Fawful. You're better than her. You're beyond her. Down in the Underwhere, she's looking up at you with pride. I know she is.'

'Not wanting...to replace her...'

'This had to happen eventually Fawful. You know it did. You were her...heir, I guess.'

'Never again...' Fawful shuddered. 'I will never have the seeing of my mistress again...'

'That's not true,' the girl countered. 'You told me before that Mario and Luigi destroyed her soul, right?'

At the mention of their names, Fawful tensed, an old fury beginning to burn again in his eyes. 'Mario...' he growled through clenched teeth. 'Luigi...' His fists were tightened so hard his knuckles had started bleeding again despite the Chaos Heart's healing properties. He jerked his body up for a moment before Mimi grabbed him and pulled him down. 'Fury...fuuuuryyyy...' His jaw hurt from clenching it too tightly. Cackletta was gone again, and who was to blame? Who forced him along on this stupid adventure? Who set it up that he would have to fight his mistress? It was them, Mario and Luigi!

'Fawful, stay down,' Mimi warned.

'Revenge...' he whispered venomously. 'Must...have...GAAAAH!'

A blast of dark energy sent a shockwave through the group, hurling Mimi right off him and knocking everyone else who were further away over. He could feel power coursing through his veins unlike anything he had ever felt before. Not even the Dark Star made him feel this way, only giving him half of its power. This was an ancient power, tens of thousands of years old, maybe even more, filling him up with an indescribable force. He felt for sure that the Chaos Heart was talking to him, but he couldn't hear the words. It was all blocked out. All his emotions were gone except for a burning hatred overtaking his mind. His eyes glowed red in their sockets and his skin was fading into a darker tone, much like those of the Tribe of Darkness, yet it was also tinged with the familiar shade of green Fawful always had. Even his clothes were changing. His shirt and pants were changing from black to a lighter shade: dark purple. His cloak was morphing, changing into a lighter purple one outlined with red and jagged around the edges, much like Cackletta's dress. Where the hood-like part of his cloak was, a grey, jagged part stood up, completing his cloak's look and his shoes were blackening from the usual grey. In the middle of his shirt was the thing that finished it all: a black heart.

Mario and Luigi peeled themselves off the ground first and drew their Ultra Hammers. 'Fawful!' Mario shouted. 'Snap out of it!'

'Power...' Fawful muttered. 'Haha...so much...of the power...I am overflowing! Hehehe...haha...HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!' Sparks of black, magical energy were crackling all around him, the Chaos Heart's magic surrounding him like a ghoulish aura. 'The power, like millions of tasty batteries, is belonging to me! All the power is for Fawful! HAHAHAHAHA!' A grin spread across his face.

Luigi's eyes widened and he gulped, stepping back. 'We...we can take this guy bro, right?' he asked Mario, more for his own shattered confidence. Mario didn't answer. 'Uh...bro?'

What Luigi saw astounded him. Mario was doing exactly what Luigi was, wearing an equally terrified expression. 'L-Luigi...I...'

Fawful's smile didn't normally scare Mario, but this was different. Normally, Fawful's smile was one of madness and sometimes excitement or smugness. That he could deal with. Fawful was crazy, and he knew that, and he was used to seeing Bowser's evil grins. That was all fine. What scared him now was the absolute _evil_ behind it. It was a hungry, wicked, even _sadistic_ grin that he instantly likened to Dimentio. He had never seen the boy use such a smile, and instantly he knew they weren't dealing with the Fawful they knew. 'Mustaches!' he screamed at them. 'For Cackletta...!'

A blast of energy tore open the entire ground beneath their feet, throwing them through the air. They crashed against the bridge that led above the home of Merlow and Merluvlee. Luigi managed to flip up onto the bridge, but Mario crashed into it with the back of his head. He fell to the ground, unconscious.

'Mario!' everyone gasped.

'I have chortles! The Red Mustache has little fight!' Fawful chortled.

'Why are you doing this?' Mimi screamed.

'QUIET!' the Bean roared. His voice reverberated, a mix of his own high-pitched squeak and a much deeper, more malevolent growl. 'Revenge is the only thing of importance!'

Luigi leaped into the air and hurled his hammer at Fawful, headfirst. The boy swung his hand and batted it aside. The plumber landed and ran forward, blue electricity enveloping his hands. 'This one's for Mario!' he cried.

'Hmph.' Fawful flicked his wrist and Luigi flew up into the air.

'MAMMA MIAAAAA!' he screamed before landing with a crash.

'Not much impressiveness,' the scientist yawned. 'Boring like a death of quickness.'

Everyone in the camp suddenly felt afraid; Fawful's similes were getting less humorous and more evil.

_Whoosh!_ Something whizzed through the air at a high speed. Fawful sniffed and turned around, catching the deadly Rubee out of the air and crushing it in his palm. He sighed and dropped the stone on the ground. 'Efforts that have wastefulness.'

Mimi had the most piercing glare on her face that Fawful had seen in a while. More Rubees hovered around her, sparkling like diamonds and looking as dangerous as knives. 'You're a liar!' she yelled. 'You promised you would control this!'

'PAH!' Fawful spat. 'Nothing has importance anymore! I am Lord Fawful, and now I have darkness! All will have bowing to Fawful!'

Mimi gritted her teeth. 'No they won't...'

Fawful immediately spun around and grabbed Blumiere's sceptre, smiling evilly. 'Slow!' he taunted. 'Too slow!'

'Fawful, you can fight this...!' the dark prince grunted. He wrenched the sceptre out of the Bean's hands and swung it at him. 'This isn't you, this is the Chaos Heart!'

'Have the up shut!' he snarled. 'I am Dark Fawful! I will destroy all!'

'I know what this feels like!' Blumiere insisted. 'To feel like you'll never be your own again, to feel like you need to destroy everything to make things right...you can escape that!' He jumped over a blast of dark power and kicked Fawful in the stomach. Far from knocking the wind out of him, all it did was make him stagger backwards. 'You only have half of what I did, and I escaped it too!'

Fawful kicked Blumiere in the stomach, returning the favour. His attack was much more successful, and blasted Blumiere off his feet. Mimi tackled him, sending them both rolling across the ground. When they were still, Fawful was forcing Mimi against the floor, smiling. 'Your trying has goodness, but not enough of it!'

'Fawful...you can't do this!' Mimi cried. 'This isn't you, I know it!'

'Wrongness!' the Bean snarled.

'No, I'm right! You...' She looked into his eyes. 'I know you still love me.'

Fawful's grip faltered as the darkness in his heart and mind wavered. 'I-I...' He was fighting that fact right now, whether he wanted to or not.

'And I...' Mimi continued, her voice dropping. 'I...I love you too.'

The boy's red eyes widened. 'What...?'

'You've been there for me every time I needed it,' she whispered. 'I love you.' Her voice held traces of conflict in those words, but Fawful didn't notice them in the slightest.

'Mi...Mimi...' Things were clearing in his mind, and the youthful feelings of love were slowly overpowering important things. Like how to speak. He was also suddenly aware that the Chaos Heart was yelling at him in a painful tone.

_'KILL HER YOU FOOL!'_ it roared in agony.

Without another word, she grabbed the sides of his head, pulled him towards her, and kissed him.

What happened to Fawful in the next few moments was hard for him to comprehend. First, it was as if a cleansing light spread from heart throughout his entire body, dispelling the Chaos Heart's influence and making him turn back to his normal appearance. The Heart's raging words were drowned out in a sea of pure light.

When his consciousness was reverted back to normal, that was when the physical sensations kicked in. He was suddenly aware of Mimi's lips on his and his heart seemed to swell up, making his body warm with affection and excitement. All the feelings he had been alienated from growing up until now suddenly took over his whole body. Everything melted away: the stress of Dimentio's onslaughts, the power of the Chaos Heart, the fact that they weren't the only people in the immediate vicinity, even the world around him. Nothing mattered...not even the death of Cackletta could shake this. His mind even seemed to numb, losing its grip on things it was always occupied with: plans, inventions, memories, and important bits of information (ie: his name). Everything was shoved aside. This was the only thing that mattered at the moment.

Mimi stopped and lightly pushed him away. She stared up at him, her cheeks pink, and he stared down at her, his cheeks the same colour. 'Mimi...' he breathed.

Mimi looked breathless and shocked. 'I...'

'Um...' Luigi muttered, then coughed loudly. Too loud for it to be normal.

Suddenly the two green beings realized exactly what position they were in. Their eyes widened and they both yelped in surprise, Fawful instantly jumping off of her and Mimi scrambling to get up. Both were blushing, their faces red. 'Uh...I...' Mimi couldn't talk.

'We need to get going,' Mario said bluntly. 'Come on. Our mystery aid won't find itself.' He started to walk and motioned for the others to follow. Timpani smiled girlishly at Mimi and giggled, making the green girl become even redder. Blumiere took her hand and led her off, but paused and looked back into Fawful's eyes, studying him.

_Lord Blumiere..._ Fawful thought, _and Count Bleck..._ Both of them were one and the same. Count Bleck had been born from Lord Blumiere, his mind twisted and corrupted by the Dark Prognosticus and the Chaos Heart. Count Bleck wanted to destroy everything and leave it in ruin...all because his love had been lost. The dark power had fed him lies and goaded him into everything. The thing that saved him in the end hadn't been Mario and the rest of them. They had no part in it. The thing that had freed him had been his love for Timpani. Love had allowed him to break free from the chains of the Dark Prognosticus and its prophecy.

'Love...' he whispered.

Mimi looked at him. 'What was that?'

Fawful frowned and crossed his arms, his eyes distant. 'Why are we on this quest of heroicness?' he asked her.

Mimi actually laughed. 'Are you joking? It's to get enough power to create a Purity Heart, silly. We need it to beat Dimentio.'

'Yesing, but...' The thoughts couldn't make it to his mouth.

'But what?' The girl pressed. 'What're you thinking about?'

'It is...he...Dimentio...' Fawful sighed. 'Nothing, never of the minding.'

Mimi frowned. 'Are you okay?' Fawful just nodded. '...alright then, if you say so.' Her hand closed around his. 'Come on, we don't have time to wait.' They started walking off towards Shooting Star Summit.

Fawful couldn't wrap his mind around something. Their quest was to create a Purity Heart, a power object with abilities to rival and even cancel out that of the Chaos Heart, the thing that allowed Dimentio to open the Void and the thing that was slowly twisting both Dimentio's and Fawful's minds. But...something didn't seem right. When Fawful had succumbed to the Chaos Heart's will and become Dark Fawful, his mind had been altered. He had become darker and eviler, more sadistic. He had become like Dimentio. Why had that been? It was because the Chaos Heart had influenced him. If he had become like that from the Chaos Heart's power, then what of Dimentio? Was his sadistic nature a result of the Chaos Heart and Dark Prognosticus? If so, then a Purity Heart would completely erase all his evil and make him become...good.

No, that wasn't right. Fawful knew how being a vessel for darkness felt. As Dark Fawful, as the Chaos Heart's vessel, he had become barbaric. He had felt so truly evil, as if destruction was the only thing he could do. He had wanted to kill everyone in his sight, even Mimi. He hadn't cared about their lives at all. They had been but toys to him. Ever sense the day he had found it in the castle library, those dark powers had been influencing Dimentio, corrupting him. For thousands of years the darkness had dwelled in him, feeding his desire for destruction and a perfect world. Even still, Dimentio's reason for evil couldn't be erased simply by removing the Chaos Heart. The darkness would still be there. He could still succeed without the Heart. How did Fawful snap out of his dark trance? It had been Mimi's huge gesture of affection that allowed the love to bloom inside his heart. Love, the fuel of the Purity Heart, had turned him back to normal. A Purity Heart alone would not stop Dimentio. The jester's pain and suffering had been bottled up inside of him for too long, hidden behind a mask of comical laughter. He had denied himself love, fearing the pain it brought. He was too far into despair to turn back. He needed love. True love. The love of a person, someone who would be there forever...and now he could no longer love at all.

If a mere object could not stop his rage and his grief, then what were they fighting for?


	24. Chapter 24: Complications

Chapter 24: Complications

Esmine

_The succubus stared at the ceiling of their house, bored. The sunlight trickled through the open window into the large room. This portion of the building used to be a barn, but it had long since been cleared out for her brother's tinkering. The bed she lay on was modest enough for the village's standards, made out of straw but covered in a well padded material. It was suspended up near the roof by planks of wood sticking out from the floor, leaving a lot of room underneath for the things her brother worked on. What those things were, however, Esmine had no idea._

_'How boring...' she yawned. Her parents were out with others in the village and her brother...well, she didn't know what he was doing really. She needed a nap; she was too tired to think. She closed her eyes slowly, ready to drift off to sleep..._

_'ESMINE!' a boy screamed. 'Esmine, you really gotta...are you okay?'_

_Esmine shrieked in surprise as he ran into the room, falling right off the bed. She stopped herself in midair to avoid injury and turned herself upright. 'Thymol!' she shouted angrily. 'I told you not to just rush in like that! I could be—'_

_'Whoa, I don't want to know,' her little brother Thymol cut in. 'You seem...really down right now.'_

_Esmine sighed. 'One of those days I guess.'_

_'Bored?' She nodded. 'That's not good. Oh, by the way,' he added. 'Mom and dad say you really have to stop.'_

_The older sister looked at him, confused. 'Stop what?'_

_'Stop that...thing that you do.' His face had gotten a little red._

_'What, you mean seducing guys and then—'_

_'LA LA LA LA LA!' __Thymol suddenly shouted at the stop of his lungs, covering his ears with his hands. 'I can't hear you!'_

_'What is up with you?' Esmine huffed. 'You know about all that stuff anyway.'_

_'Esmine, I'm nine years old. I _shouldn't_!'_

_'Well you do.'_

_'Whatever!' Thymol was irritated, and Esmine couldn't help but laugh; the kid was really smart and knew way more than those his age did and should, but he chose to ignore all the things that were too mature for him. A difficult thing to do when you're the sibling of a succubus. 'I found something today out in the woods.'_

_'What was it?' she asked. 'Some kind of weird rock or something?' Knowing Thymol it'd be something she had no idea about._

_'No, it was a book.'_

_Esmine frowned. 'A book? Just lying out in the middle of the woods?'_

_'Yeah. Everything around it was...dead.' His gaze faltered and his eyes flickered; he swallowed some saliva._

_'Dead?' the girl repeated. 'What do you mean?'_

_'I mean everything was literally dead. The grass was wilted and grey, the trees were blackened and cracking, any animal that was in there was just lying there on the ground rotting. Everything was just dead.'_

_'Oh, so you just walked right up and picked up the book in the middle of all of this death?'_

_He nodded. 'Yeah.' Reaching into his old, worn bag, which he used to carry important things, he pulled out a book. It was a dark black with three grey rings supporting the spine, four polished black stones near the points of the covers. A continuous line went around the edges, moving around the stones. It was red at the top and faded to purple at the bottom. Another line, shaped like a diamond, was inside the square, having the same colour scheme. A glowing blue pearl was right in the middle, the inside shifting and moving like smoke. On the spine was a small plate with words engraved that Esmine didn't have enough time to read._

_A lump formed in her throat when she looked at the book; she could feel some evil darkness flowing off of it, touching her, slithering across her skin..._

_'No!' she blurted out suddenly. Her brother looked at her inquisitively. 'I...I don't like that book...'_

_'Oh, is it yours?' The way he said it was mocking, like he couldn't believe her._

_'No, it's not, it's just...I don't like it. I get a really bad feeling.'_

_Thymol, not the superstitious type, shrugged. 'There's a plate on the side,' he reminded her. 'I looked at it when I picked it up.'_

_'What does it say?'_

_He turned the book to look at the spine; the pages were ancient-looking. 'Dark Prognosticus,' he answered. 'That's all it says.'_

_'Dark Prognosticus...' she repeated. 'You should throw that away and never look at it again.' Her voice was shaky._

_'Why?'_

_'I don't know, just do it!'_

_Thymol scowled. 'I found it, it's mine.'_

_'Thymol—'_

_'I don't care what you think!' the boy shouted. 'I found it and I'm going to read it!' He put it back in his bag and locked it in the chest at the foot of his bed, which was on the other side of the room from Esmine's. The majority of the former barn was Thymol's so he could store all his stuff, but it was also their bedroom. 'Don't touch it or else,' he warned._

_'Or else what?'_

_'Or ELSE,' he repeated venomously. He turned and walked out of the room._

_Esmine stole one last glance at her brother's chest. 'Dark Prognosticus...' she muttered. Shaking her head, she walked out the door._

'That was the turning point.'

The Void-induced wind howled all around them, the slowly disintegrating matter flying through the air. A lot of dimensions had met their end, yet a lot more still needed to be destroyed. 'The turning point?'

'Yes. That was the point when everything I knew and loved unravelled at the seams.' Esmine sighed, her heart like lead at the memory. Her black and white gothic lolita dress whipped in the wind, the lace tearing. A loud snap echoed in the air and her clothes were instantly mended. The man beside her leaned back and floated in the air for a moment before sitting down. Esmine sat down without the floating.

'That does not sound pleasant,' the Master of Dimensions said. 'He found the Prognosticus and someone attacked him later?'

'Only a few weeks later. He'd gotten far into the book too, telling me about how we were all going to die in the future.' She shuddered. 'Reading that thing killed him just as much as his murderer did.'

Dimentio took off his mask and stared at it. 'Do you ever believe that perhaps his killer had a reason for killing?'

'Don't you dare say that!' the succubus yelled angrily. 'He murdered my brother, he destroyed our whole village! So many people were killed that day that our village completely collapsed! We didn't have enough people to sustain it. Our mayor died, and our farmers, the crops were wiped away, and the children...so many little children died.' She hugged herself. 'I remember this one girl with green hair, running for her life from that monster. I couldn't really see either of them, but her hair was really had to miss. He caught up to her and made her suffer in the worst ways imaginable. He burned her, hacked at her body...I could hear her screams even from where I was, even as I ran away to find my brother.'

Beside her, Dimentio tensed. 'And yet, if it were for a better cause—'

Esmine's anger flared up; how dare he try to defend a killer? 'Don't tell me you're actually _sticking up for the killer?_'

'Esmine, kindly don't make this any worse than it should be.'

The girl was on her feet now and screaming at the jester, who stared up at the Void, seemingly unaffected. 'My brother was killed and you're defending his murderer and you think I'm overreacting? You're a demon Dimentio! You're more of a demon than I am!'

Dimentio floated up again and flipped around to his feet. 'Forget it. What's past is past, and there are more important things to do now.'

Esmine's anger brought tears to her eyes. 'It's never past...' she snarled through clenched teeth. 'My brother will always be dead, and no amount of time is going to heal me.'

'...' Dimentio was silent. Esmine blinked and her tears flowed down her cheeks. 'It's difficult,' he said, 'to try and explain my mindset to one so indifferent. Thinking of all the possibilities of this person...' He shook his head. 'If you could, you would kill your brother's murderer?'

Esmine nodded harder than needed. 'Yes, definitely. It wouldn't matter who it was, even if it was my own mother or father. I would kill them too.'

Dimentio smiled. 'I admire your dedication, Esmine. You clearly loved your brother.'

'I thought you hated love...'

'I do. The only women I've ever loved abandoned me when I needed them the most and my family has always been in ruin.'

'And men?'

Dimentio started. 'Excuse me?'

'Well, you could be g—'

'I most certainly am not!' The jester cut, appalled.

'What's the problem with it?' Esmine's mouth began to curve in a smile.

'I just know my orientation!' he continued.

'So you _are_ attracted to women?' She grinned in that sly way of hers.

'I...you infernal girl...!' A noticeable black blush was gathering on his face and he dropped his mask.

'It seems you aren't as you say you are.' Esmine giggled. 'You're so bad around women!'

Dimentio sighed and laughed. 'Perhaps I need to adjust my composure. I've been losing it a lot lately.'

Then, without giving him warning, Esmine wrapped her arms around him. She knew full well that he wouldn't return the embrace, but she needed to hug somebody, and he was her best option. Her superior tensed, surprised, staying like that for a moment. After a few seconds he did the thing she didn't expect: he hugged her back.

Esmine's heart leaped around in her stomach and her body was suddenly warm. He actually did it? Someone...a man...actually returned her gesture? This had been done multiple times, but that was because of her power. She realized that Dimentio was not affected at all by her succubus power; he had hugged her back out of his own free will. No one had ever done that before. Her heart was pounding; why was this? What was going on? She had never felt this way...

'I love you...' It was said before Esmine could stop herself. Why had she done _that?_ It wasn't like she really...he was just...it was only a single hug!

Dimentio gave a light gasp of surprise and his hands tightened slightly. He let go and turned away. A few moments passed before he spoke. 'That...' he said, 'was not called for.'

'I...I'm sorry!' she blurted. 'I didn't mean...I mean, I...' She was shaking, feeling a million emotions at once.

'You already know my thoughts on that emotion Esmine.' The jester's voice held traces of regret, almost sadness.

'I know, I didn't...' She hid her face in her hands. 'I'll never do anything like that again!'

Dimentio picked up his mask and slid it over his face. The neutral expression on the magical object flashed every possible mood before settling on Dimentio's previous face. 'I'd hoped things such as this weren't going to happen.'

'Let me help you!' the girl insisted. 'I'll do anything you want, just instruct me and I'll obey!'

Dimentio sighed again. 'I have some tasks for you. Prepare for a battle as well. The heroes are a vicious band of fools, I will credit them that.'

Esmine nodded. 'Okay, I will. Anything.' She felt so sorry now, for what she had said. "I love you?" How could she have done something so stupid? 'But...I have to ask you for something.' Now she felt selfish.

'Yes?'

'I need you to give me power from the Chaos Heart.' Dimentio didn't respond. 'I've been experimenting, using the energy around the castle, but it's not enough. I need more.'

Dimentio nodded. 'I will give you the power you desire and then depart. The heroes are not done yet, and there is one more thing I need to do before you are needed.'

Esmine nodded. 'Thank you Dimentio.'

Another pause from Dimentio. 'Feeling an imperfect emotion is not the fault of the person feeling it. If it has not been removed, it is against your control.'

'You talk like it's a disease.' He didn't say anything. 'You didn't feel anything at all, did you...?'

He shook his head. 'Nothing. I am a loveless being, doomed to solitude. Such is the price I must pay for a perfect world.'

'Are you sure there's not someone here that _is_ your perfect world?'

'...I thought so, once, but...I don't think that is the case anymore.'

Neither of them said anything for a few moments. Esmine didn't know it, but Dimentio was having unpleasant thoughts at the moment. He had returned her embrace only because he knew that he needed to cheer her up. The Count had done so with Mimi on many an occasion. He didn't know it would come to love. And then came her brother and her dedication to him. He was the murderer, and she didn't even know it. Esmine was now both a danger and a liability now, her emotions running wild. She would have to be eliminated once her usefulness ran out.

The magician did what he had to and left without a word.

Fawful

Fawful stole a look back behind him again to look for his former mistress' body. His Headgear, which he had put back on his head again, helped his search by magnifying his sight. Her body. devoid of any life, had been vaporized when he had transformed into Dark Fawful. He knew this, yet he still looked back just in case she was alive and just fled the scene. He never saw her.

Mimi's hand slipped around his and he felt his body grow warm even from that simple contact. 'Are you okay now?' she asked, concerned.

Fawful nodded. 'It is being time to let go,' he said, struggling somewhat to get the words out. 'Cackletta had the commanding.'

'You'll cheer up,' she said. 'Death isn't the end of everything. We have to carry on.' She looked down. 'Nassy taught me that when the Count left her...and all of us.'

Fawful felt a pit form in his stomach; so many people had lost people they cared about, and it was all Dimentio's fault. Things needed to end, and soon. 'Dimentio will be moving in a downward direction!' he promised.

'You know, I'm sick of trying to interpret your slang,' Mimi laughed. 'But yeah...that meany's going to go down. He's hurt too many people.'

'And your feelings?' Fawful asked.

Mimi clenched her teeth. '...no, I'm done with him.' The Void crackled in the sky. 'Done done done. I hate him...'

Fawful saw her gaze falter and he knew two things: 1) Her words held absolute hatred, so he knew she was telling the truth; she really did hate him. 2) She herself was uncertain as to her feelings. While she hated him for what he did, she still couldn't move him out of her heart. Fawful was fine with that. Her hand was in his, and she was letting go of Dimentio, no matter what it took.

'Who do you think the person is?' she asked. 'The one who's going to help us?'

Fawful shrugged. 'I am not knowing.'

'I hope she's not another freak like the one's _he's_ been conjuring up.

'Since we are having the mentioning of him,' Fawful warned, 'we should have preparedness. He will probably have battle with us again.'

Mimi nodded, her red eyes sparkling. 'I'll be ready.'

They all ascended Shooting Star Summit and went right up to the top, taking in the cosmic vista of all the stars above them, both shooting and stationary, shining in all their glory. The summit was cloaked with magic from Star Haven, making it always appear to be a cloudless night and only added to the beauty of everything in it. Even the Void, which was normally a black, spinning mass tainting the sky, appeared different here: the magical energy from Star Haven engulfed it and the Void sucked it up, making the dimensional black hole a reflective, sparkling blue. Even something as awful as the Void was made utterly breathtaking in this place.

Mario stood in the middle of the summit where the large star symbol was engraved, glowing blue. 'Well, this is it,' the plumber said. 'It's time to call her.'

'Huh?' Bowser grunted. 'Call who?'

Mario smiled. 'You've never seen her have you Bowser? You stole her star power once and tried to destroy her comet another time.'

His face lit up in recognition. 'You mean we're gonna meet the one behind my defeat? GRAH!' He stomped his foot on the ground in anger.

Mimi looked at him. Do you know who he's talking about?' Fawful shook his head; he was as clueless as she.

Mario put out his hand and what seemed to be a small wisp of cosmic dust came out of his palm and floated around. 'I've got a little energy left from her. I think I can use it to call her.'

'Who're you talking about?' Timpani asked. 'Is she your girlfriend or something?'

'G-_girlfriend?_' Peach sputtered. 'She is not!'

'Sorry Peach, I forgot you were sensitive about Mario and other women.' Timpani giggled.

The princess' cheeks turned a bright red. 'I am not! Since when are you this...this jokey?'

She hugged Blumiere tightly. 'Since I have a reason in my life to be.' Blumiere put his arm around her and smiled.

'Go on Bro, call her!' Luigi urged.

Mario nodded and looked up to the sky. Putting his hand above his head, the cosmic dust flew upward into space. 'Maiden of the Stars, come down to our planet.'

Nothing happened at first. They waited for a short while and still nothing happened. 'Wha's goin' on?' O'Chunks asked.

_'Who is the one who calls me and creates a cosmic path?' _The disembodied voice was pure and crystalline, ringing through the air with a light hum.

'Mario of the Mushroom Kingdom,' Mario answered the unseen woman. A few more moments passed and then a dazzling like shined in the sky, a human form taking shape within it. The woman had fair, white skin and glittering, teal-blue eyes. Platinum blonde hair flowed down to below her shoulders and covered her right eye. She wore an elegant, teal dress that went down to her feet, just barely exposing her silver dress shoes, a golden and silver broach pinned onto its chest. A small, silver crown rested on her head two red and two light blue jewels glistening in it. In her hands she held a wand with a silver shaft that ended with a golden star. It hummed and glowed with power.

'She's beautiful...' Mimi breathed. Fawful, as much as he hated to admit it, agreed; she had a beauty that didn't come from prettying yourself up with fancy, frilled clothes and makeup.

'Mario,' she said with a smile. Her voice seemed even more pure in person. She looked over to the younger bro. 'And Luigi too.' She giggled. 'Your names always did have nice rings to them.' She looked over to Peach. 'And Princess Peach as well. How are you fairing, Your Highness?'

Peach bowed, smiling; she had clearly gotten over her embarrassment. 'Very well, thank you. Are the Lumas all well?'

The woman bowed too. 'Yes they are. They ask when you all are going to come and visit.'

'Hey!' Bowser snarled. 'What about me? I know you too!'

The woman's eyes narrowed. 'You are the one who drained my ship of its power and attempted to destroy it with your horrible Galaxy Generator, aren't you? King Bowser?'

'Uh...yeah, that's me. OW!' He received a whack over the head with the woman's wand.

'One of the Lumas requested that I do that when I met you.' She ran her hands over her wand shaft and gazed around at all the other people. 'I'm afraid I don't know who the rest of you are.'

'And we are not knowing who the one who is you is being either,' Fawful reminded her.

She giggled again. 'What an interesting manner of speech.' She bowed courteously. 'My name is Princess Rosalina. I am the watcher and protector of the cosmos and the Lumas who inhabit my Comet Observatory.'

Fawful grinned widely. 'I am being Lord Fawful, the one who will have the ruling of the world in the time that is later.' He sighed. 'But in the time that is now I am helping the red mustache with his adventure of heroicness.'

O'Chunks jogged up and did a militant salute. 'Name's O'Chunks!' he told her in his thick Scottish accent.

Blumiere and Timpani both bowed. 'I am Lord Blumiere, former prince of the Tribe of Darkness and count of Castle Blumiere.' Fawful noted that the prince, despite having bad memories of being Count Bleck, still kept that part of him in his introduction, though he changed the name of the castle.

'And I am Lady Timpani,' Timpani said respectfully. 'I'm his wife.'

'I'm Mimi,' the green-skinned girl told her simply. 'Nice to meet you.'

'Midbus,' the pink pig boomed. He had an air of nervousness about him, perhaps from seeing his master bow down to another person like he was nothing. Fawful would have been shocked too had he seen Cackletta kneel before another person.

'I am pleased to meet all of you,' Rosalina said. She turned to Mario. 'Why did you call me here from the cosmos?'

Mario pointed up to the Void. 'That.'

Rosalina looked at it. 'It's rather pretty.'

'Not normally. It's called the Void, a black hole created for the purpose of destroying every dimension that exists. Outside of Shooting Star Summit, it doesn't look like that at all.'

'That is quite the concern indeed...' the woman agreed. 'How may I be of assistance?'

'We need your help to create something called a Purity Heart. That'll be able to close the Void and save every dimension.'

She nodded. 'I will aid you to the best of my ability. I assume you are ready to create it?'

Mario shook his head. 'I'm not sure. We've collected two very powerful items that'll help us and we'll have the power of the seven Star Spirits, but I don't know if all that, plus you, is enough. We'll have to go back and check with Merlon, our fortune teller.'

Another nod. 'Very well. Lead the way Mario.' She smiled. 'I suppose it is my turn to return the favour to the both of you.'

They turned and started to walk away from the summit when the voice they had all been expecting rang through the air.

_'Ahahahaha! You don't really think it'll be that simple do you?'_ Dimentio warped into view, doing an aerial flip. 'For it is I, the Master of Dimensions, the Pleaser of Crowds, Dimentio!' He bowed in the air, grinning behind his mask. 'A pleasure to meet you, Princess Rosalina.'

Everyone was already ready to attack. 'All right guys, here we go!' Mario shouted.

'Ah ah ah, not so fast my mustachioed friend!' Dimentio wagged his finger. 'Let's not jump in too quickly now.' He giggled. 'We've barely remet!'

'Aren't you cheerful today?' Blumiere snarled, brandishing his sceptre like a sword. 'I'm avenging Nastasia, and everyone else you've killed!'

'Ahaha. My poor, little brother. You have no idea of the peril you're in.' He clapped his hands. 'For of course I would be cheerful! The odds are in my favour today, after all.'

'What're you talking about?' Mario demanded.

'Why is it that you heroes immediately believe that we will up and tell you our plans right away? Why not drag it out slowly and drown you in suspense?'

'Forget it!' Mimi yelled. 'You're going down _now!'_ She flew at him, firing deadly sharp Rubees at incredible speed. A snap of the fingers created a barrier in front of Dimentio, the Rubees smashing into it and breaking it into pieces that soon disappeared. One red gem flew right through it and sliced Dimentio's shoulder, making him spin through the air and smack face-first onto the ground.

'Mimi, be careful!' Mario cautioned.

She girl stood over the boy, a Rubee in hand. 'You're dead, you stupid freak!'

Dimentio rolled over and looked up at her. It could have been the mask distorting his expression, but Fawful could have sworn he saw something in his eyes that looked like longing. 'Go ahead then...' he said, smiling. 'Kill me. Allow me to be lost in Death's embrace forever. Put the Rubee through my heart...and kill me.'

Apparently Mimi saw it too, and hesitated. Fawful's heart skipped a beat; curse her feelings toward him! 'Mimi!' he shouted, almost ripping his blaster right out of the holster. 'Have the ducking!'

Dimentio's grin widened. 'I believe it's now or never Midbus.'

It took three seconds exactly for everyone to fully grasp what Dimentio had said, and by that time it was over. Fawful started mid-run and felt something very big smash into him with the force of a freight train, knocking the wind clean out of him and sending him flying through the air. He hit the ground hard, his Headgear's glass dome thudding on the ground. He laid flat on his back, eyes wide, gasping in short breaths that didn't have enough air in them for half his lungs. He tilted his head to find that Luigi was laying on the ground next to him, knocked out cold. Mario hit the ground on his feet and clutched his stomach, which was apparently where he'd been hit. Mario was hardy, Fawful had to give him that. Timpani and Peach were also down for the count, but Blumiere had been missed completely. The only other people up that were unaffected by the attack were Bowser and Midbus, whose large frames were able to withstand the abuse.

Then it hit Fawful: Midbus was the one who had launched the attack.

'Wh...what?' Mimi gasped.

Dimentio grabbed the sides of Mimi's head and pulled her close. 'You are the only one who need survive this,' he whispered to her. He snapped his fingers and she went out like a light.

'Traitorous swine!' Blumiere bellowed in a rage. 'How dare you harm Timpani?' He made to attack but was intercepted as Dimentio smashed right into him headfirst, knocking him clear off the summit. He fell a distance before floating back up to fight an opponent that wasn't there; Dimentio had moved on to Mario and was engaged in combat with him. Midbus was brawling with Bowser, the only person in the group able to match his brute strength. Fawful looked on, powerless to change the situation with a horrible feeling of betrayal stewing in his gut. His faithful minion, a traitor? It couldn't be true! Midbus had said that he had said no to Dimentio's offer...but of course that had been a lie. What else could have caused him this much damage?

Dimentio did a flip in the air and fired a block of magic through the air. It collided with Bowser's face and exploded, making the Koopa stagger backwards. Midbus brought a huge fist forward and pounded the king as hard as possible in the stomach; even with the shell's belly protecting him, it was still enough to bring even the great Bowser to his knees. The pig immediately ran and jumped, bouncing on the ground once, twice, and thrice before bouncing high up into the air and coming down on Mario like a cartoon anvil, taking the plumber out of commission. Blumiere flew at the two of them, shooting a blast of dark magic at Dimentio while swinging his sceptre at Midbus. It was a valiant effort, but Midbus grabbed the shaft of the sceptre and swung Blumiere around like a ragdoll, smashing him on the ground and stomping on his back.

And so the great Heroes of the Light Prognosticus were wiped out.

'Ahahaha! Like I said, my dear brother,' Dimentio taunted with glee, staring down at Blumiere, who lay moaning on the ground. 'The odds were in my favour.' He turned his gaze to the only person standing on the side of good: Princess Rosalina. 'And now, my dearest princess, you must come with me.' He extended a hand. 'I do hope you will come quietly.'

The princess looked at her fallen allies with despair. 'There is no way I can possibly overcome you,' she admitted sadly. 'I...will go with you.'

The Charming Magician cackled, clapping his hands together. 'Thank you, merci, gracias, and however else you give thanks in this freakish dimension! You are the _only_ person I have ever known to come quietly, and for that I thank you.'

Fawful was recovering, feeling the Chaos Heart's rejuvenational powers flush the stale air from his lungs and mend his broken bones. He jumped to his feet and powered up the rockets on his Headgear. 'MIDBUS!' he screeched at the top of his lungs. 'I HAVE FURY, TRAITOR!'

Both villains were astounded. 'No!' Midbus yelled, spinning around to battle his old master. 'Die!'

'The Chaos Heart...' Dimentio breathed, lifting a hand over his chest. 'Midbus, stop!'

The giant pig either didn't hear him or didn't care. He brought his fist back and sent it forward, the force of the blow whistling in the air. The mouth of the Headgear bit down on Midbus' meaty arm and flung Fawful straight up into the air. He felt the power of the Chaos Heart flow through him, empowering his body and corrupting his mind. He had only to focus on one thing to control his murderous desires: the utter destruction of the one he thought had been loyal to him. He thrust out his hand and orbs of darkness shot out of his palm, raining down on Midbus and exploding on contact. 'I have darkness!' he cried.

'BRAAAUGH!' Midbus bellowed in pain, the darkness burning his skin. Fawful landed on the ground and remembered a technique. Gathering the energy into his fingertips, he thrust his hands up into the sky, willing the energy to take shape in it. Black volts of lightning rained down, scorching the summit and bringing Midbus to a world of hurt. Soon he was brought to his knees, fighting to stand back up. He wasn't empowered by darkness and therefore couldn't stand its abuse. Using magical lightning...Cackletta would be so proud.

'Fink-rat!' he taunted. 'You are having the weakness like a coffee that of the blend of Woohoo!'

'And I?'

Fawful was suddenly knocked off his feet by a blast of dark energy, tearing up the summit floor. He steadied himself with his rockets and flew around erratically, throwing attacks at his new assailant, Dimentio. 'Taste the dark fury!' he screamed.

'Perhaps you should eat your words.' The jester put his hand out and a blast of power unlike anything Fawful had ever seen was shot at him. He put up a strong shield, but the force of Dimentio's attack was enough to destroy it and throw Fawful again. The force was lessened at least.

'Midbus, I believe you should show our guest to our new home now.' He snapped his fingers and the pig was briefly engulfed in a glowing light. He then grabbed Rosalina's hand and a 2D box formed around them.

Rosalina and Fawful met eyes, and their looks told each other more than words could. Fawful's determined stare told her that he would come to get her as soon as he could, and her thankful, brave gaze told him she would be fine. That was all that could happen before Midbus and Rosabella flipped out.

Fawful stared at Dimentio, his huge teeth clenched. 'Fink...rat...' he gasped.

'Ahahaha! Your petty insults amuse me like the foolish attempts for humour of a classroom fool! This is your loss, heroes! With Rosalina under my guard, there will be no way to create a Purity Heart...and then the Void will engulf all without fail, making the Dark Prognosticus come true!'

'It had the failing the time of first!' The Bean boy spat.

'Which means?' Dimentio snickered. He looked at his sleeve as if checking the time on a watch. 'Oh, look at the time! I really must be off.' He waved at Fawful, grinning. 'Ciao!'

Dimentio warped out of the dimension, leaving Fawful alone to tend to his fallen comrades.


	25. Chapter 25: Destination Derailment

Chapter 25: Destination Derailment

Rosalina

The cosmic princess sat in her dank cell in Castle Dimentio, staring at the man holding her wand between his fingers; she had hoped he would overlook it and she could simply teleport out of captivity, but that hadn't been the case. Perhaps she had been too naive to hope he would overlook something that important. No matter the reason, her hope now rested in the hands of those she had seen wiped out in a heartbeat, and that did nothing to calm her quickly beating heart.

'Now, this shall be your new home until the worlds collapse and my reign is assured,' said the magician, Dimentio. He held her wand by its tip between his forefinger and thumb, moving it back and forth in a pendulum motion. He was mocking her. 'After that...the Void will seal your fate once and for all.'

Rosalina's face didn't change; she just stared at him, half defiantly, half interested. She didn't really feel fear, not for herself. She was hundreds of years old, and still young. She would be young forever, until someone saw fit to end her game. She was afraid for everyone she had been forced to leave behind. The Mario Brothers, Peach, Bowser, all their friends...and the Lumas especially. 'Do you think you will hold me captive forever?' she asked him.

'That is exactly what I plan on doing.' Dimentio chuckled and tossed her wand into the air, catching it as it came down. 'Unfortunately I cannot kill you, as the magical aura that surrounds you repels me. Grambi knows why that is. Ah ha ha.' He spun the wand in his hand. 'You've really made my day, princess. A captive was just the kind of pick-me-up that I needed.' He slipped the wand under his motley poncho.

'Why do you hide your face behind a mask?' the woman asked. 'Do you have something to hide?'

'Actually I've become rather fond of this mask. It was given to me by a friend and I've kept to it ever sense, though perhaps throwing it away would have benefited me more.' He spun around, laughing quietly. 'Now make yourself at home princess, as this is going to be where you spend the remainder of your days until the worlds' ends.' He floated out of the room, closing the heavy door with a snap of his fingers.

It was only then did Rosalina allow the fatigue and worry to seep into her body. She collapsed on the floor, breathing heavily and fighting back tears. She hoped everyone was okay; she hadn't been able to aid the heroes when they needed it most, and guilt weighed heavily on her heart. And the Lumas...her babies...they were all alone in a comet that wouldn't fly through the starry sky without her. Soon the worry gave way to sadness and the sadness destroyed the last of her hopes. She had always promised herself, for the Lumas' sakes, that she would never bring herself to tears over anything. They needed her, and they needed her to be calm and composed, but for the first time since all those years ago, when she suffered the loss of her mother, Princess Rosalina cried like the entire world had ended.

And it was most likely going to.

Dimentio

Dimentio floated along the castle halls, doing aerial spins and flips, humming the song he had recently got stuck in his head—The Ultimate Show—smiling happily to himself. Things were finally going his way, and it felt so good.

He went into the stark black meeting room and landed on top of his personal pillar. He snapped his fingers. 'Doopliss!' he called. 'Grubba! Esmine! Valex!' He snapped again. 'Report to the meeting room at once.'

Five seconds later, they were all standing on their respective pillars. 'Howdy ho Master!' Grubba called. 'It's been a while since we all had ourselves a little ol' meetin' hasn't it?'

'Yeah, what he said,' Doopliss agreed. 'I've been bored as heck waiting for you to get back to us. All you do is talk with Esmine over there.' He smirked. 'Do you two have a little thing going on?'

'Oh Doopliss?' Esmine called. The Duplighost looked just before he realized he probably shouldn't, considering Esmine's power. However, what he saw wasn't the sweet face of a succubus working her magic, but a look from an absolutely livid woman that shot daggers right into his heart. 'Shut up,' she snarled. Doopliss shut up.

'Thank you Esmine,' Dimentio thanked. 'I'd have hated to clean up his remains if he'd have went on.' Doopliss shuddered. The jester turned his gaze upon them all. 'Now, I have two announcements to make. First of all, we have a new minion.' He snapped his fingers and the portly form of Midbus appeared on his own pillar. 'Meet Midbus, your new partner.'

'Hey!' Grubba exclaimed. 'Ain't he that feller from that group o' heroes?'

'The heck is HE doing here?' Doopliss spat.

'Yes yes, Midbus, meet your peers.' Dimentio did a flip and remained upside down. 'Our piggish friend here leads me to announcement number two. We have a prisoner who I have quietly tucked away in our cell.'

'You've captured one of the heroes?' Valex asked. 'That is certainly a victory!'

'Ah, that is incorrect, unfortunately. The person who was captured is a princess from the cosmos of the dimension our heroes call home. Her name is Rosalina. Feel free to go say hello, she'll be in our dungeon for the remainder of the Void's work.'

Esmine raised an eyebrow. 'You captured a princess? Why?'

'Because,' he answered with a small smile. 'She is one of the key powers to create the Purity Heart that will end us. If we do not keep her detained until our victory is assured it might mean the end of everything.'

'The end of your plans,' Doopliss agreed.

'The end of my ultra-buff bod,' Grubba added.

'And the end of a perfect world,' Esmine concluded.

'Master,' Valex interrupted. 'With all due respect...why keep her alive? Why not kill her?'

'Ah ha ha,' Dimentio laughed. 'Go ahead and try. The energy field that surrounds her will sap you of everything.' He shook his head. 'Only the Void can erase her. Killing her before that is possible, but it puts us and the entire dimension at risk. Captured as she is now, she is not a threat, but put her in danger and you might realize that she is more powerful than even _she_ knows, with or without her wand.'

'Wand?' they all questioned.

'Yes.' Dimentio took out the wand and waved it, a few light sparks flashing from its star-shaped tip. 'Her wand, which allows her to utilize her power of light. If anything, agitating her when she doesn't have it will only cause chaos. That is not for her to do.' He grinned, sending shivers down them all save Valex. 'That is what _we_ are here to do.' He laid down on his pillar top, stretching. 'Which, I might add, is why you are all here. I imagine that you are hungry for some stage time are you not?'

'YER DARN TOOTIN' I AM!' Grubba hooted. 'Jus' give the word n'all be on 'em all like a pack 'a crazed Chompers!'

'I'll give them all Underwhere!' Doopliss vowed.

'I will always be at your command,' Valex said firmly.

Dimentio looked at Esmine in such a way that it could be read only one way: _This is your moment of redemption._ A shadow passed her face and she nodded bitterly. 'I'll do whatever you ask Dimentio.' She clenched her fists. 'A perfect world is what awaits, and it won't make itself.'

'True as ever. I trust you all have been in top shape and have gotten used to your dark powers?'

Grubba and Doopliss gave affirmative answers. 'I haven't had much time to really practice, but I've really taken to it.' She grinned. 'Really.'

'You're a natural then? I suppose it's to be expected considering you're a demon.' He jumped up and did a flip in the air. 'Well then, the heroes have not been stopped, not by even a mere inch! They will be back in full force soon, but I have a plan. Esmine...' he looked hard into her eyes. 'Your job is the most important. Fail me...and the consequences will be...' He grinned. 'Positively _demonic_...'

Esmine took a step back and nodded nervously. 'I'm ready.'

'Good, good. The rest of you can leave while I brief Esmine on her mission. I shall call on your once the time arises.' They nodded and left.

'So...' the girl said. 'My job?'

Dimentio floated a short distance off his pillar and dropped to the floor. 'Yes,' he replied. 'Listen carefully.' He twirled Rosalina's wand in his hands. 'This is incredibly vital.'

Fawful

Fawful picked himself off the ground after taking a moment to rest. The battle had been so surprising that even though it had been short it had drained him. Everyone else though...he looked around the summit to all the bodies. Some were unconscious. The rest simply couldn't get up. All were very injured. Midbus...that traitor!

'I have fury!' he cried to the heavens. 'The pig who has fat puts the smelly cheese of rage in the stomach that is mine, but soon he will have dining on a twelve course meal of hurt, and I will have the munching on the tasty treats of vengeance! I HAVE FURY!' His voice echoed through the air and he stared up into the sky. The sight of the many stars calmed him slightly, allowing him to stay level-headed. He needed to help his friends.

As he took out his storage cube he started. There it was again: friends. It was so strange that he could call them all that. Maybe they were his friends. He looked at Mario and Luigi, his two most hated enemies, and that feeling disappeared. He could never call them friends. Allies yes, for now, but never friends.

He pressed a button and his holographic inventory list popped up. He poked the Ultra Shroom symbol with his finger and another "screen" came up asking how many he would like to deposit. He clicked "ALL." Every last Ultra Shroom he had was beamed into existence. Picking them all up he went around to those who were conscious, giving them the powerful healing items when they needed it. When that was done the ones who were healed went about trying to get the rest conscious again or just force-fed them the Shrooms. Even when their wounds were healed it took a while for them to regain mobility and more time still for them to be comfortable enough to walk around normally. Within a half an hour everyone was up and fully healed.

'Mamma mia...' both Bros. groaned. Mario stretched his back. 'That was...'

'Painful?' Luigi guessed.

'Agonizing?' Timpani gasped.

'A bloomin' load o' hurt?' O'Chunks added.

'Cheap,' Mario answered. 'Midbus betrayed us!'

'_WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON THAT GUY HE IS GOING TO KNOW THE WRATH OF BOWSER!_' the Koopa King roared. '_HOW DARE HE BETRAY ME?_' He turned to Fawful. 'What about YOU?' he accused. 'You're his master or whatever, I think you're in league with Dimentio too.'

Fawful glared at him. 'Cease your ramblings of stupidity, fink-rat!' the Bean spat. 'Midbus is not being the toady of mine!' He stomped his foot. 'FURY!'

'Listen!' Mario shouted. 'We can't fight. We just can't. The last time we fought Nastasia...' He clenched his fists. 'Nastasia died. As much as we all have different personalities, as much as some of us may be heroes, some villains, and some indifferent, we can't fight. All that ever does is hurt people. Understand?' Bowser just grunted. 'Grambi damn it all!' he screamed, turning on Bowser, anger in his eyes. 'Why don't you understand that apologizing or agreeing with me doesn't make you any less of a person or any less fearsome of a villain? You're on our team and you're going to stop with all of this! Every single time I've ever had to work with you it's been utter Underwhere!'

'Hey listen Tubby!' Bowser bellowed. 'I don't have to do anything you tell me to!'

'Yes you do!' Mario countered. 'If Dimentio finds you alone he'll kill you! You're one of the four Heroes of Prophecy, he'll never let you live!'

'Since when do you care about me?' the Koopa snarled. 'All you've ever done to me is kick my butt every time I try to get to know the princess!'

'GET TO KNOW HER?' the plumber sputtered in disbelief. 'You kidnap her and harm innocents!'

'Yeah, well so what?'

'So...SO WHAT?'

'Mario!' Peach cried. 'Bowser, stop this fighting! Please!' They didn't hear her.

They didn't have to, because six spider legs wrapped around Bowser's body and Mimi got right up in his face while Blumiere grabbed Mario by the collar and hoisted the short man up. 'YOU STUPIDHEADS!' Mimi screamed, tears running down from her eyes. Her True Mimi form was only half done, making a strange and creepy hybrid between a sweet girl and a horrifying giant spider. Her head was tilted 90 degrees to the side with her spider legs protruding from the neck in an awkward fashion. 'NASSY'S DEAD AND DIMENTIO'S LOOSE AND ALL YOU'RE DOING IS _FIGHTING?_'

Mario stared at Blumiere, who was holding him up by the collar of his shirt, with a steely look on his face. The dark man let him down. 'Mario,' he whispered. 'You need to show more restraint. Bowser isn't worth this.'

Mario sighed and nodded. 'You're right...I don't know what happened.'

'IF YOU DON'T SAY YOU'RE SORRY RIGHT NOW I'M GOING TO TEAR YOUR STUPID HEAD OFF!' the spider-girl continued to shriek.

'OKAY OKAY!' Bowser roared. 'I'M SORRY I'M SORRY!'

'Mimi, let him go please,' Blumiere commanded.

She screamed at the Koopa a bit more before disappearing in a puff of purple smoke and reappearing as her normal form, still crying. Fawful was cowering near the edge of the summit having not been prepared for Mimi's transformation. Bowser had smoke issuing from his nostrils, seething. 'Bowser...' Peach whispered. 'Why? Why all this anger?'

'I hate him,' Bowser grunted loudly. Mario sighed.

'Bowser, please look at me. No,' she said. '_Really_ look at me. Into my eyes.' Bowser did, and his face softened. 'Please answer me again...why Bowser?'

'I...' Fawful, whose eyes had been focussed on Mimi, was looking at Bowser. His normally gruff and almost bratty demeanour had completely deteriorated under Peach's gaze. 'Well...he beats me up all the time and stops my evil plans!'

'Mario is willing to put those past fights behind him to work with you Bowser,' Peach told him, her voice calm and soft. 'He feels the same way towards you normally. After all...you kidnap me a lot.'

'But that's because...' His face turned a shade of red. 'Well, because...'

A small smile formed on the princess' face. 'Yes?'

'Well, I kinda...think you're awesome,' he groaned.

'Teehee,' Peach laughed. 'Have you ever thought about trying to just tell me that? You don't have to kidnap me and hurt people. That hurts me too. That's also why Mario and I are...well, um, why we're such close friends.' She laughed nervously. 'He saves me from you. Isn't that ironic? You're trying to make me love you, and it's making me love someone else.'

'That sucks...' the Koopa grumbled.

'The Koopas have been the instigators in all the Mushroom Kingdom's past wars. Maybe it's just in your blood. For some reason I highly doubt you'll stop kidnapping me after this. You'll keep coming back, won't you?'

'Yeah, maybe...'

'You're thinking right now would be a great time to kidnap me, aren't you?'

'How could you know that?' Bowser cried.

'Because I've been kidnapped by you a million times Bowser, it's never-ending!' She laughed. 'Just remember: Mario's willing to put your past behind you. Are you?'

Bowser looked up at Mario and back down to Peach. 'I guess...just this once though!' he growled at Peach's kind look. 'I'm not helping him forever, he's my enemy! THAT'S why I kidnap you, so I can ground him into a plumber SMEAR!'

'You are _unbelievable_,' Peach groaned, glaring at him. After a few seconds she broke into light laughter. 'But I guess that'll never change.'

'Are you two done?' Mario asked bluntly. 'We've got to get to Merlon, we've wasted enough time.'

'Hey, shut—' The king cut himself off as Peach put a pleading hand on his shoulder. 'Uh...sure, let's go.'

Mario stopped and looked behind him at Bowser, a surprised look on his face. 'Um...okay then. Let's go to Merlon.'

Mario knocked on the door.

'Merlon is out!' the fortune teller shouted.

'Merlon, enough,' Mario sighed. 'You know it's us.'

The door opened. 'Yes yes,' Merlon said absentmindedly, letting them in. 'Yes, it's you. Of course.' He moved up to the chair he sat in to do his readings, fiddling with his thumbs awkwardly. 'Have a seat have a seat...' He adjusted his robe. 'Now, hm, what was I...?'

'Are you all right?' Mimi asked him. 'You seem kinda...nervous.'

'Hm? Oh! Well, I uh, ahem!' He cleared his throat. 'A, um, lovely lady recently came to visit so I'm a little, er, flustered.'

'Oh.' Mario looked at him sceptically. 'Well...hope you aren't too flustered to tell us our next objective.'

'Of course not!' Merlon said. He looked into his crystal ball once again, trying to probe its secrets, trying to find the heroes' next destination. 'Ah!' he exclaimed.

'What? What is it Merlon?' Luigi demanded. 'Where is it? Oooh I hope it's not too scary...'

'Well, on the contrary, it's—' He cut himself off.

'It's where?' Bowser roared impatiently.

'Well, erm...it is...that is to say...'

'Have spit!' Fawful snapped.

'Yeah, spit it out Merlon!' Mimi added for the sake of clarity.

'It's in Nautoville!' the sage blurted out.

'...Nautoville?' they all asked.

'A city,' Merlon sighed. 'Quite far from here. The only way to access it is by train. Excess Railways has a new station here in Toad Town.'

'It does?' Mario raised an eyebrow.

'Indeed. Toad Town's local train shut down some time ago and those managing the Excess Express decided it would help sales if they began expanding their stations.'

'Oh. So how long away is Nautoville?'

'Erm...' Merlon twiddled his thumbs again. 'Three days by train.'

'Th..._three days?_' the red plumber exclaimed. 'No, that can't be right, it can't!'

'Unfortunately—'

'We don't have three days Merlon!' Blumiere shouted. As if to further support his point, lightning crackled outside, yet the day was perfectly clear; the Void had grown to an unimaginable size, yet still the Mushroom World survived. Fawful didn't know how many dimensions close to the centre had met their ends, but he didn't want to think about it. As the Void loomed ever closer in the skies, Fawful's heart began to pound.

_'The end is near...' _the Chaos Heart whispered. The Bean boy forced himself to remain composed as his heart throbbed; how much had the veins grown since he'd last looked at them?

'That is your only means of transport!' Merlon yelled. 'If you do not take that, you will have to walk! The world will be destroyed before you reach halfway!'

There was a moment of tense silence before anyone spoke. Mario took his Excess Express train ticket out of his pocket. 'This thing probably cost enough to cover two each of us, so I think it'll work.' He turned around. 'Time to go. Thank you for the guidance Merlon.' Before he reached the door he turned around. 'Wait a minute, where are Merlon and Nolrem?'

'Out.' Merlon said it as if it had been carefully rehearsed...or maybe Fawful's hearing was playing tricks on him.

'Out?' Mario questioned.

'Out.' Merlon nodded.

Mario took one last suspicious look before walking out the door.

Merlon

Toad Town's fortune teller slumped back in his chair, shaking with fear. 'Oh dear, I was not convincing enough...'

_'You did fine,'_ came a woman's voice, deliberately sweet. The mysterious woman he had met earlier suddenly appeared from nowhere as if an invisible substance, which then turned black, had melted off of her. She had red hair and red eyes to match, dressed in a short black shorts and a matching top. It was adorned with white lace and had stitching up the back of her shirt; rows of "x"s. She otherwise wore nothing covering her legs, leaving them bare. Black, flat-toed shoes were on her feet. Her eyes glowed with a strange magnificence. Merlon didn't know why—he could think of no possible reason why this could be—but looking into her eyes just reduced him to jelly, something that he hadn't felt in many long years. He suddenly wanted to do anything to make her happy.

_'I'd like you to do something for me Merlon...'_ she had said to him. _'You know Mario right, and his friends? Well...I'd like you to mislead them. Lead them away from their item, and I'll do the rest.'_ He hadn't wanted to at all, but...for this woman, he would do anything!

'I did w-well?' he stuttered.

'Yes...' She ran her fingers up his arm and pressed her hand to his chest, racking his body with uncontrollable shudders. 'You did so well I'm going to give you...a reward.'

'A...r-reward, miss?'

'Yes...I think you'll like it.'

Then she suddenly sank her teeth into his arm. He felt some sort of thick substance seep into his veins, and hot like melted metal. He screamed in terror; his arm was the first thing to lose feeling, then it travelled across his body. He could feel it paralyzing him, polluting his brain. He fell to the floor, all feeling in his body completely lost; his sense of smell gave out as his brain entered a low consciousness, then his sense of taste. The last thing he saw was the woman standing over him, wiping his blood off her mouth and spitting it onto the floor, then he lost sight too. His hearing disappeared last, the sound of the girl's laughter filling his ears as everything became nothingness. Merlon and Nolrem had fallen victim first; now the third sage and the last guide to the heroes was alone, not even alive unless you counted the fact that he could still think.

He had turned the heroes in the wrong direction. What was going to happen now...?


	26. Chapter 26: Living in Excess

Chapter 26: Living in Excess

Kamek

Kamek lay still.

He had seen the red-haired woman come in and immediately hid from sight; an unbelievable amount of dark energy came from her, some of which he could feel came from Dimentio's Chaos Heart. He identified the rest of the energy as that of a succubus, which was confirmed when the Merlons and Nolrem were instantly affected by her power. She had incapacitated the otherworldly sages and enveloped them with dark energy, making them invisible, then hid herself as the heroes came in and ordered him to lead them to Nautoville. He had been talking with the sages before about the heroes' next item. He had said it was called a "Heart Stone" and was, apparently, the "very essence of love's power." He normally gagged at Goomba spores like that, but seeing as love was the only thing that could stop the Void he decided to take it for all it was worth.

Now however, things were going very wrong. The person the heroes were supposed to being back wasn't here and the heroes themselves were going in completely the wrong direction. Even in his weakened state he had been able to cast an invisibility spell and lay low. Now that she had gone the Magikoopa stopped it and picked himself off the ground.

He looked around. Toad Town's fortune teller was lying motionless on the ground, his mouth hanging open with a trickle of drool coming from the side, his eyes giving a dead, glazed stare at nothing in particular. Kamek adjusted his sling—he had shattered his left arm badly—and walked forward carefully.

'Merlon?' he called. No reply. No wonder; if what he knew about succubus venom was correct, it shut down all the senses in the body, leaving the heart, lungs, brain, and other important systems active. Some succubi used this to their advantage to do whatever they wanted to a completely defenceless and unaware victim (mostly to save their victims the pain; not all succubi were evil necessarily), but mostly they gave the venom in small enough doses that they would be perfectly aware of what was going on, just immobile. If someone was unlucky enough to fall victim to a sadistic succubus, they were in trouble...to understate it. 'Nolrem?' No answer either. He sat down in Merlon's chair at his table and tried to think of something to do. He couldn't leave the house; Dimentio would kill him before he could blink if he was seen, which he was most likely to be. He couldn't work his magic well enough without a wand to make a difference for the sages, so he was basically useless.

The most he could do was get to work on his own wand. Merlon and Nolrem had brought with them supplies to do so, but only he could make his own wand. He went into the back room and went through all the things.

It was time he had gotten a new one anyway.

Mario

The Excess Express was absolutely ravishing. It consisted of a front locomotive, three passenger cars, a dining car, and a storage car. The engineer's car up in front was the longest one, painted a dark grey which shined in the sunlight. The first half, farther back, was just like a box with two windows on either side. The second half in the very front of the train was made to support the vast expanse of buttons and leavers that was required to work the train. Two silver parts protruded from its sides with one light sticking out of each. The bottom of the front of the train had a shining gold fixture on it with a larger light affixed right in the middle of it. Two small wheels could be seen on either side, rods connecting them, followed by one very large wheel, followed by two medium sized wheels, also connected by rods. The car was made so that these wheels were fully visible to any who would want to see them. A golden ladder went up the side to the top of the train.

The next five cars were almost identical to each other; all rectangular box-shaped cars, each was painted a different colour (red, blue, yellow, purple, and white respectively). The first one from the front (the red car) had a brown door visible from the side as an entrance to the train. Each had three wheels on each side of the car as well as three windows on each side (with the exception of the red car, which had two on one side because of the door). A long golden bar extended from the front to the back of each car on both sides, the wheels on the insides of them. The red, blue, and purple cars were the passenger ones, with the yellow car being the dining car and the white car being the storage car. The storage car had an extra section to the back of it: a brown door with a platform to stand on. One could climb up on top of the train from there as well if they didn't feel like taking the ladder on the front.

The entire train seemed to shine with magnificence. It was strange to everyone there save Peach and seemed to give off an aura they couldn't quite place; the word they were looking for was...was...

Expensive. _Very_ expensive.

'Well, here it is,' Mario said. 'The Excess Express. Or at least one of many now.'

'Mr. Mario!' The door to the red car opened and a Toad walked out. Unlike most Toads, the mushroom cap on his head was black with dark red spots as opposed to the normal white with red, a bronze rim around his head where the cap connected with it. He wore a closed black vest with a dark red stripe down the middle and white gloves with black and red wristbands. Much like any other Toad, he wore a white diaper-like thing on his bottom half with brown shoes. 'A pleasure to see you again!'

Mario stared. 'Don't tell me you're the exact same conductor from the last time I was on the Express.'

'Of course I am!' The Toad looked hurt. 'Don't you remember me?'

'Uh...yeah, of course I do!' Mario smiled. 'Good to see you again.' Mario was lying; all Toads looked close to the same, and he had no doubt that all Toad train conductors looked just like this one. It was just how things seemed to work. 'Still working on the Excess Express?'

'Yes, the pay's great!' The Toad grinned. 'By the way, did you know that this train is the same one you rode before?'

'Huh.' Mario looked it up and down. 'Do your other trains look like this one?'

'They're a bit different, but have the same general idea.' The Void crackled in the sky and the conductor shuddered. 'We received word that you were coming and needed an urgent trip to Nautoville.'

'You knew?' Mario frowned. 'Who told you?'

'I don't know. They sent a letter saying it was imperative you make it there quickly. I wrote back saying the quickest you could make it there would be three days and they wrote back saying it was okay.'

'How long ago was this?' Mario was getting increasingly unsettled.

'A few days ago. The post was surprisingly fast.'

'I guess that proves Merlon was right,' Mimi said.

'Sounds fishy,' O'Chunks muttered.

'I believe it's time to board! Excellent timing, Mr. Mario, the train leaves in five minutes. May I see your ticket?' Mario pulled it out of his inventory (Grambi knows how it was possible; Mario had no apparent pockets or anything else of the sort). It was very simple; just a red card; darker red on the top and on the right corner with the rest a lighter pink shade. The conductor took it, pulled out a small machine, swiped the card through, and handed it back to Mario. The machine beeped once. 'Looks like it still works! All aboard the Excess Express!' Everyone piled on one after another. Those not from the Mushroom Kingdom had never seen a train before, so they were excited to go on their first journey. The conductor tapped Mario's arm before he got on. 'Um...Mr. Mario...?' he asked, his voice shaky. The plumber turned to look at him. 'You...you _will_ save us, right? Whoever's in Nautoville is going to help you, and you'll make that thing in the sky disappear, right...?'

Mario gave him a reassuring look. 'Absolutely.'

The Toad smiled. 'Thanks.' He let Mario go on, allowing others who had their own tickets pass as well. 'Well, that's that,' he said. As he turned to board, someone grabbed his shoulder. He spun around to see a red haired woman in black clothing. 'Oh, do you have a ticket?' he asked her.

The woman smiled sweetly and her eyes glowed. 'Do you think you could let me board? Pretty please?'

Fawful

Fawful looked around his cabin room. It was very spacey, which surprised him. Soft red carpet covered the floor, creating a nice warm feeling when coupled with the brown wooden walls. A large couch was pushed up against right wall while a bunk bed was against the left. A dresser was next to the bed with a large window showing a view of the moving landscape. A table with a nice lamp was beside the door and a set of three lights were on the other side of the window; golden with pink lampshades and pearls hanging from them and on the light switch. The only thing that was taking away from the serenity of the room was a lumbering O'Chunks laying on the couch.

'This thing's fancier than me old cabin back home!' he exclaimed.

'It probably had filth!' Fawful spat. He hadn't even spent five minutes with O'Chunks and he was already livid. He guessed he just had an issue with idiots.

'Eh, tha's right actually. Should'a taken better care of it.'

The lack of any reaction made Fawful even madder. 'Fink-rat...' he hissed.

'What's that even mean?'

'It is meaning that you have stupidity!' he snarled. O'Chunks just turned around. WHY did he have to share a cabin with HIM? He looked out the window at the passing scenery; it was flat, green land with a few trees here and there. The Void was still visible in the sky as always and it still scared Fawful how big it was getting. He sighed; Mimi was right, fighting wasn't the answer to anything, especially not when the world was ending. 'I have apologize,' he said.

''S fine,' the man said. 'Y'get used to it.' Fawful felt a slight twinge of pity for O'Chunks; he didn't have much in the way of intelligence and probably had never heard the end of it. As he thought this he realized he knew nothing about this man and it had never crossed his mind to ask.

'What was in the past of yours?' he asked.

O'Chunk's yawned and got up. 'Use 'ta be a general in an army, but...someone double crossed me. We lost.' He sighed. 'The Count found me after an' took me with 'im. Good thing too, or I'd be pushin' up daisies righ' now.'

'General?' Fawful was surprised. 'But you...uh...'

'I migh' not look it, but I'ma pretty good leader. Tactics n'all.' He looked sad and Fawful suddenly felt sorry for making him bring it up.

'I have sorry,' he muttered.

'Nah, s'all over n' done with now. Now we gotta do more fightin'.' He laid back down with his hands behind his head. He, like Fawful, stared up at the Void. 'Destroyin' everything's not right, not even when you got reasons like the Count did. 'Course, the Count didn't actually have a good reason after all.'

Fawful looked at the warrior, taking in the armour he wore and his burly form; it seemed silly to him now that he hadn't suspected his past even a little. 'Do you have regrets for working with the Count of Bleckness?'

'Nope! He's like a father ta me. He was like a father ta all of us.' A sad look passed his face and he looked weak and alone. 'Nassy loved 'im like Timpani does, ya know. Would'a done anythin' for 'im, would'a gone to the grave.' A tear was forming in his eye. 'Didn't know it'd come so soon...' The Void crackled with black lightning overhead, though nothing could be heard from inside the train. 'I'd 've done the same for her, but she didn't know it. Everyone had issues with love. Whoever they loved didn't love them, but someone else did.'

Fawful looked at him; he was just staring at the ceiling. 'I have question,' he said.

'Mm?'

'Can a person be having love towards people that are more than one?'

'Eh? Never thought'a that before. Maybe.'

Fawful opened the sliding brown door. 'I will have exploration of this Express of Excess,' he said. He closed the door, leaving his cabin mate alone.

The interior of the train was incredible too. The outside of his cabin was a hallway much like his room: wooden walls and a red theme. His room was room 5, and room 4 was the only other one in his car. Moving down the cars brought him to the dining one, a large room with a yellow theme. There was a shop at the far left end of the car in its own little room, glass walls displaying the items on the shelves. Next to it was a small, closed off kitchen where a chubby, fish-like Cheep Cheep sat wearing a chef's hat. On the other side of the kitchen were several fancy dining room tables. All of these things were on Fawful's left side. Moving up was another hallway housing cabins, three of them this time. Cabins 6, 7, and 8 were in this one. The hallway was much like the one his cabin was in but this one had a blue theme. He wasn't allowed in the last car from the back as it was the storage room. A train attendant had offered to take his things and put them in there when he had first boarded the train, but he had declined. He went back past his room to find another hallway, this time with a green theme. Rooms 1, 2, and 3 were in this one, as well as the door leading outside the train. Finally there was the locomotive car up front. It was a large car, with various machines on Fawful's left side. Near the front was a large, curved dashboard with many switches, leavers, and buttons. A large and also curved glass windshield was on the front with two windows on either side of the train. The engineer (a Toad who wore a black shirt with a yellow stripe up the front, white gloves, brown shoes, the traditional diaper, and a black engineers cap over his mushroom head) was the one driving the train. He let Fawful examine all the things on the dashboard and told him that no he could not drive nor could he try to improve the trains mechanics because it worked just fine.

As he turned away in a huff and prepared to leave the engineer's car, the door slid open and a Clubba walked in. His skin and shell tone was exactly like Grubba's, but he wore a white suit with a red tie. His hair, if he had any, was covered completely by a large hat that matched his suit. He wore bifocal glasses on his face. 'Heya Engie, I gotta—' He looked at Fawful. 'Oh, you busy with someone else? I'll pop back in in a mite.' He went to leave.

'No wait!' The engineer called. 'What do you want sir?'

'Hm?' He turned around. 'Well, I jus' wanted ta say that the conductor's gonna let me poke around in the storage room whenever I want. Got a, ahem, secret project goin' on in there that shouldn't be disturbed. Very fragile, and _very_ important.'

'Oh wow,' the conductor said. 'How important?'

'Well...' The Clubba leaned in. ''S gonna blow the minds of everyone in Nautoville! Gonna make the grand presentation there, a' course. So!' He straightened back up. 'Jus' lettin' ya know ahead of time so nothin' unfortunate happens.'

'Uh...unfortunate?'

'Well I'll be seein' y'around! Don't crash the train or anythin'.' He departed.

'Who was that person who was just being in this room of buttons?' Fawful snapped at the engineer, whirling around to face him.

'Yikes!' the Toad exclaimed. 'Don't hurt me!'

'Have answer,' Fawful growled.

'That was Mr. Crubba. He's made a few...ahem, generous donations to Excess Railways before and we've always given him extra treatment. He's, as you heard, off to Nautoville to present something very important.'

Fawful turned around and glared at the door as if it were Crubba himself. He walked out.

'So there's a guy on the train who looks like Grubba?' Mimi hung her head over the side of her top bunk lazily, stifling a yawn. 'Sounds suspicious. Should we tell someone?'

'They will have the seeing of it in a time that is not going to have long,' Fawful huffed, waving the suggestion away. He was on the bottom bunk of Mimi's and Peach's room, though Peach had left for a time to talk with the Mario Bros. He craned his neck to look out the window; it was mid afternoon and the sun was getting lower in the west. The faint metallic rattle and hum of the train's wheels against the tracks had been in Fawful's head for hours now, and he was getting used to them. It was actually very relaxing.

'Do you think it's really him?'

'I would not have surprise.' He laid down on his side, trying to ignore the fact that this made his huge glasses dig into the side of his face. 'Doopliss too.'

'The fact that he can be anything's kinda creepy.' She paused for a moment. 'Come to think of it, I could be anything too couldn't I?'

There was the sound of a poof of smoke from above. 'Mimi, do not have silliness!' Fawful sighed. No answer. '...Mimi?'

Suddenly a snake slithered up across his side. It looked at him for a second and hissed menacingly.

'ACK!' Fawful shrieked and jumped up, hitting his head on the bottom of the top bunk. 'Muh...Mimi!' he yelled. 'Do not have the scaring of me!'

_Poof!_ Mimi was back to normal, smirking at him. She was wearing a blue dress today with a white pearl necklace. 'You're such a scaredy cat.'

'Hmph,' Fawful hmphed.

Mimi hugged him, making his heart warm. 'Oh well.'

Fawful remembered something that had been bugging him. He pushed Mimi away. She looked at him, asking if something was wrong. 'I have question,' he said.

'What is it?'

'Can a person have love towards people of a greater number than one person?'

Mimi froze for a moment, shooting Fawful a look that made his skin crawl. 'Is this about me and Dimen—'

'Have forgetting about Dimentio,' Fawful interrupted. 'Just have answer, please.' He stared into her eyes, pleading for her to answer truthfully; it was absolutely about her and Dimentio.

Mimi hesitated, then sighed and looked away. 'Yes. Yes they can.'

'And you are knowing this how?'

'Why do you have to know?' Mimi glared at him like she was ready to drive a Rubee through his head.

'I have awareness that this is a subject of sensitivity, but can you have trust to me?'

Another moment's hesitation. 'Alright Fawful,' she said, drained. 'You win. I know because I'm still in love with Dimentio.'

As prepared as Fawful was for this, it left a horribly sour taste in his mouth. He must have looked angry, because Mimi looked away, hurt. 'Even after all the things of evil he had done, you still have love for him? Why?'

'I don't _know_ Fawful, I really don't. I want to hate him, I want to stop loving him, but I just _can't_. Something about him has just stuck with me. I feel that underneath everything he's a really nice person. I've seen that side of him...and I just...miss it...' She curled herself up as if she was suddenly cold. 'I do love you Fawful,' she said. 'I really do. You're different than anyone I've met. But so is he. And I...' Her voice trailed off. After a few seconds, Fawful could hear her silently crying to herself.

He gave her a hug, holding her close. 'Do not have the crying of the tears that are sad,' he said comfortingly.

'It's _stupid_...' she whispered, trembling. 'Why can't I just forget about him...why can't I focus on you?'

'Love is...' Fawful started to say.

_Useless...weak...pathetic... _Dimentio's voice whispered the words in his head and he began to actually see his view for once. If Mimi couldn't love, she wouldn't feel this pain...

'Love has complicatedness,' Fawful finally decided, ignoring the words.

'You got that right...' Mimi muttered, sniffling.

They laid there for a time—Fawful didn't know for how long—until the sun began to sink below the horizon, casting an orange glow over the landscape. The calm, hazy light streamed in though the window, relaxing the two of them.

'I love you...' Mimi whispered.

Fawful was silent for a moment as he tried to dissect Mimi's tone; it sounded sincere enough...but he couldn't be sure, not with her feelings like they were. It felt like there was some tension.

_'I do love you Fawful, I really do. You're different than anyone I've met...'_

Fawful remembered that and immediately regretted thinking Mimi would lie to him about something like that. He smiled. 'I have love to you too,' he said.

_Ding dong!_ The intercom rang. _'Attention passengers, we are now serving dinner in the dining car. Our special tonight is the Shroom Flambé sautéed with a Koopasta sauce. We hope you will enjoy.'_

'Wow, I'm actually pretty hungry.' Mimi laughed lightly as her stomach growled; Fawful felt the same way. They got up and exited the car, eager to fill their empty stomachs.

Esmine

Esmine sat on the couch in her cabin alone, staring out into the sunset. The announcement for dinner came on the intercom, but she remained in her seat. In her hands she slowly twirled Rosalina's magical wand, which glowed slightly between her fingers.

_'I'll do it, I'll follow your orders exactly,' she had said. 'But...can I ask for something from you?'_

_Dimentio had raised an eyebrow. 'Something from me? If it's a request for "alone time," I'm afraid—'_

_'Can I have the wand?'_

_'...pardon?'_

_'Rosalina's wand. I may find some use for it.'_

_'Oh.' Dimentio had taken it out and twirled it around, smiling slightly. 'I don't see why not, it's of no use to me.' He handed it to her, and that slight exchange, the little gift, had made Esmine's blackened and frozen heart glow._

She hugged the wand close to her heart; it was useless, she knew, to cling onto such small things, but...Dimentio made her feel _alive_, he made her feel like she had someone who cared...like she was human. She had never felt that before.

'Anything you ask...' she whispered. 'I'll obey exactly.' She remembered the horrible tortures her little brother had faced, the pain and suffering. 'Nothing like that is ever going to happen again. A perfect world...' Her eyes sparkled and she smiled. 'I can't wait.'

She got up and walked out of her cabin for dinner.


	27. Chapter 27: Undertakings

Chapter 27: Undertakings

Dimentio

The Excess Express zoomed by the flat landscape at speeds unparallel to anything Dimentio had yet experienced in this dimension. The brutal wind blew through his black and white hair as he sat on the top of the train, holding his mask and hat tightly against the roof. The sun was setting, casting a nice orange glow over the landscape. The light reflected off of the jester's eyes and they appeared to glow, his bright yellow eye sparkling. He once again found his mind turning to the occupants of the train that he had grown to despise so horribly.

Mario.

Luigi.

Peach.

Bowser.

Blumiere.

Timpani.

O'Chunks.

Fawful.

And...Mimi.

He frowned. Something was missing when he thought of her. _Mimi,_ he thought. Nothing. Not a flicker of emotion. _Mimi!_ he boomed in his head. Nothing. Not even a quiver from his locked heart. He sighed and closed his eyes. 'Why am I bothering myself with this? I cannot love.'

_I cannot love..._

_'Hahaha. The prisoner struggles against the bars he himself created. What a scene.'_ The Chaos Heart laughed.

_What do you know, you're a meaningless artefact._

_'I am a heart, Dimentio. Emotions are my speciality.'_ There was a pause. _'The emotions of others, at the very least.'_

_You can't feel anything?_

_'Not even a small amount. But then again, why would I want to? Knowing what you go through is enough to make me stay emotionless.'_

_Mimi..._ Dimentio's thoughts strayed away from the dark heart in his chest and mind. He winced and his arms and legs throbbed. Pulling up one of his sleeves to his shoulder revealed that the veins were beginning to move up his arm.

_'Interesting isn't it?' _the Chaos Heart said. _'You had better kill the boy soon Dimentio, or I'll begin to steal _your_ energy to sustain myself.'_

Dimentio's eyes widened and he gave a start. '_That's_ what you're...?'

_'Did I not mention? I suppose not. In this half-and-half existence I can only live so long on my own before attacking my host. I haven't told Fawful...yet. Let us hope this is more incentive for you.'_

_Who's side are you on anyway?_ the magician thought.

_'_My_ side, Dimentio.'_

Another sigh from the jester. He turned his head and looked toward the sunset, thinking of Mimi again. _You _want_ to love..._ he thought bitterly. _You can't stand the missing feeling..._

Dimentio muttered a silent curse, thinking that he had better kill Mimi sooner than later if he was to survive this.

Fawful

'Here you are, the waitress said cheerfully, putting down Fawful's plate. The waitress was a Toad with two purple pigtails sticking out of her mushroom cap wearing a blue shirt underneath a pale purple apron. A matching bonnet-like hat was on her head and big pink hearts were on her white cap. She wore pink shoes. 'Teehee! Hope you enjoy! '

'Thanking you,' Fawful thanked her. He looked down at his meal and smiled; the train lines must extend throughout the Mushroom World, as he was now staring hungrily at his favourite Beanish dish. 'I have yum!'

'That looks so...' Mimi stared at his food with a grossed-out look on her face. 'Gross!'

'PAH!' Fawful spat (making sure not to literally do so). 'You are not having any taste in the dishes of culinary.' Mimi stuck her tongue out at him. 'Besidesing, what is being _that?_' He made an exaggeratedly disgusted face.

'The special,' Mimi answered with a smirk. 'Don't ask why, but Mushrooms are _everywhere_ around the dimensions. Not just in the Mushroom World, though they're a lot more plentiful here than anywhere else.'

Fawful shrugged. 'Mushrooms cannot have the beating of the dishes of beans.'

'Another thing I don't get,' the green girl said, 'is how you, a Bean, can eat that.' She pointed at one of his morsels of food. 'A bean.'

The Bean shrugged again. 'One is being a species and the other a food.'

'Guess so. It just seems kinda...cannibalistic.'

Fawful glanced down at his meal for a moment nervously. He resumed eating, making sure not to think about what Mimi had just said. 'Ever of the what.'

Mimi ate another bite of her food. 'This stuff is GREAT!' she beamed with a full mouth, smiling. 'The whole place is great, actually.' She swallowed the food and wiped her mouth with a napkin. 'The cabins, the dining room, the food, the scenery...' Looking out the window, Fawful couldn't help but agree; the horizon was flat as the train drifted by miles of plains, the occasional tree dotting the ground. The short grass growing around them gleamed with water reflecting off the orange sunlight which drifted in through the windows of the car. In this light, Mimi seemed so...radiant. 'I've never actually been on a train before, you know. My dimension didn't advance enough I guess. So this really is a great...why are you staring at me?'

Fawful caught himself and started. 'Uh, whating?'

Mimi leaned forward across the table, extended an arm, and flicked Fawful in the nose.

'OUCHES!' Fawful exclaimed, holding his hands over his nose. 'What was that being for?'

'It's polite to listen to a girl when she's talking to you Fawful.' Mimi smiled a small smile, though Fawful could see a smug smirk hidden behind her expression.

'I have fury...' the Bean mumbled, and munched his food. He closed his eyes and sighed inwardly, letting the calm rumbling of the train's wheels on the tracks calm him; it wasn't rickety and loud, but it wasn't non-existent either. It was the perfect spot in-between: not annoying, but enough to make you always know you were on a train. The serene setting helped too. He opened his eyes and took a sip of his drink (a glass of refreshing Chuckola Cola). Something was pressing on his heart and mind.

'Mimi,' said Fawful.

Mimi put down her own drink (a chocolate Ultra Shroom Shake [very expensive, but then again it was Mario who was paying the bill {unbeknownst to Mario}]). 'What is it Fawfie?'

Fawful grimaced and tugged at his chest, then made an audible groan and leaned back, gasping. 'Haah...well, Fawful is thinking..._haaaahh...ck..._'

Mimi frowned, concerned. 'Are you okay?'

Fawful looked at his glass, now half full (or was it half empty?); the reflection in the clear material showed him what would be his reflection had Dimentio not permanently taken that spot. As he looked at Dimentio he got a vision; it was a brief flash, and if he hadn't been paying attention he would have missed it or dismissed it as a memory.

In that almost single moment, he saw the jester sitting on top of the Excess Express, an expression of pain on his face much like what Fawful had on his.

'Fawful, your eyes are red...' Mimi breathed.

Had he been crying? 'Fawful has not had the tears, has he?'

'No, I mean your eyes are literally glowing red, like mine. Your irises are red.' He could hear fear in her voice, but she kept her volume to a quiet level.

Fawful's whole chest and stomach throbbed, as well as his back; he felt like magma was flowing through his veins. 'Dimentio is being on the train.'

'WHAT?' Mimi shouted, slamming her hands down on the table. The cutlery and glasses clattered and all eyes drifted to her. 'Um...' Her face grew red. 'S-sorry...' She sat back down and began to eat again until everyone looked away. Fawful saw Mario give her a tense glance before returning to his meal with Peach and Luigi. 'How can...how can he be here?' she whispered furiously.

Fawful told her.

'Great...so he shows up AGAIN. Excellent.' The girl's face was now locked in a snarl. Fawful tugged again at his heart; the pain was worsening. Not just for him either, for he had seen Dimentio struggling too.

'We will have victory,' he assured her. 'No worries.' He tried to smile.

'It's not that...' she muttered, then shook her head. 'What was that thing you wanted to tell me?'

'Hm? Oh.' He had wanted to tell her how he felt about her again; the impending doom of the Void was worrying him. Now though...perhaps not. 'Never of the minding.'

Mimi's hand slipped over his. 'Are you worried that thing's going to kill you?' Her voice was small and soft.

His heart skipped a beat; he _hadn't_ thought of that. 'Well _now_ I have worry!' He laughed. 'So many worrisome things, all happening to me. I have such fury...'

'Hey, no worries right?' Mimi smiled. 'You'll be fine.'

Fawful looked back into his glass; Dimentio still stared back. 'Yesing,' he said, deliberately avoiding another staring contest with his reflection. 'You have correctness.'

They finished eating their supper. They were no longer hungry; in fact, they were stuffed. At least, they were stuffed until they saw the dessert menu, then they were starving again. After the dessert, the bill came. Mario just about had a heart attack, but paid anyway, even when they offered to toss the bill; Mario had done plenty for them anyway. The sun had dipped below the horizon, swathing the sky in a starry blackness. Lights throughout the Express flicked on and gradually people began to leave the dining car and return to their cabins. Crubba, who had indulged himself in plenty of delicacies, left looking quite full. Mario and the rest of them left as well. Mimi said goodbye and retired to the cabin she shared with Peach. Fawful was just about to leave himself when something made him pause.

Or, rather, some_one_.

A person he hadn't yet seen pushed in her chair and yawned. She was a human, which was an oddity in itself. Her hair was red and she wore a black, laced short sleeved shirt and a skirt complete with netted leggings. Fawful frowned; he could feel dark energy coming off of her in wisps.

She looked at him; her eyes were a ruby red colour, shining in the lamplight. She smiled devilishly and her eyes suddenly began to glow with a supernatural sparkle. 'Hello,' she said.

Suddenly, Fawful's entire body seized up and his heart did back flips in his chest. He didn't know this woman's name, who she was, her past...he knew absolutely nothing about her, but he knew for a fact that she was the single most beautiful creature in existence. Her hair, done back in pigtails, flowed magnificently down below her shoulders, shining perfectly in the light of the train's bulbs. Her skin was smooth, an immaculate white, and her figure had no flaws at all. Her eyes still shone with that otherworldly glow, but that only added to the splendour. The single word that had flowed from her lips sounded like an angel's song...

She blinked. The glow in her eyes vanished, and with it every ounce of infatuation Fawful felt towards her. It was like a veil had been lifted; she definitely wasn't unattractive, but she didn't appeal to him like, say, Mimi. His quickly-beating heart gradually slowed down to a normal pace as he thought of everything he had seen in her; Mimi hadn't crossed his mind at all.

He must have had a very shocked look on his face, because the girl (who seemed to be years older than him, particularly due to Fawful's immature appearance) laughed. 'Bye then,' she said plainly, and left.

Fawful just stood there, utterly baffled. The only thing he could think of to say was, 'Whating the heck was that?'

He himself, after slight recuperation, left for his room, tugging at his throbbing heart.

Fawful couldn't sleep a wink.

There were two reasons for this: the first was that O'Chunks was snoring so loudly that it would have been an impossible task for not only him, but probably those in the cabins near theirs.

The second was that his heart was sending horrible bursts of pain throughout his body with every beat. Fawful gripped his pillow with one hand and his chest with the other; the standard pale blue pyjamas the Excess Express supplied (which consisted of a shirt, a pair of pants, and a nightcap) would be incredibly wrinkled by the end of the three days. But that wasn't what bothered Fawful; it was that his heart hurt like all Underwhere.

He forced himself to not cry out from the pain so as to not wake anyone and make a scene, but this was easier said than done. A whimper escaped his lips.

_Ba-bump! Ba-bump! Ba-bump!_ Every bump of the heart felt like a fire in his veins.

'Wh-why...?' he breathed silently to himself. Why was this happening? Why was the Chaos Heart doing this to him? Was it trying to kill him and gain its proper place in Dimentio?

_Dimentio..._

A scene flashed through his head; Dimentio was lying on the ground, leaning against a wall, talking to Grubba and Doopliss. Even though the vision lasted but a second, he could see that the room was full of boxes. There was only one place on the train that could have all those boxes, and that was the storage car.

He rolled out of bed, still clutching his chest, and quietly slipped out the door, closing it behind him.

He stumbled as he walked, the outer car walls supporting him. The beats were getting much more painful and making his vision blur for a moment every few beats. He groaned; it felt like his arms and legs were stretching, just the base of them where they met the rest of his body. He thought of seeing how far along the veins were, but decided against using anymore energy. He muttered the same curse he had heard O'Chunks use once, knowing full well he shouldn't make a habit of it.

Edging his way out the door down the car and into the next brought him into the dining room. The lights throughout the train were all shut off as it was too far into the night for them to be on. The only thing illuminating the car were the glass windows with starlight streaming in, and that was just barely allowing Fawful sight. The item store had a large curtain drawn over the glass and a sign on the door said "CLOSED."

He fell, gripping his chest, his face smashing against the ground. He rolled over onto his back and breathed heavily.

_Ba-bump, ba-bump, ba-bump!_

The only thing other than the beating of his heart that filled his ears was the wheels of the train on the tracks. He picked himself up and staggered the length of the car, moving to the final cabin car. It, like the other two, was black, all the windows just barely illuminating it. Walking across the car, he sat down and leaned against the door.

Another vision flash confirmed it; Dimentio, Grubba, and Doopliss were behind this door. He strained his ears to hear, desperate to know what they were up to.

'...and then there's this glass casing over it, see?' The voice was Grubba's.

'Looks like you did a pretty good job slick. Heh heh...I'm impressed.' Of course, that was Doopliss.

'It doesn't look...complete, Grubba. It seems to be...weak.' The voice was Dimentio's, and it sounded pained.

'...you sure you're all right feller?' Concern edged its way into the Clubba's voice.

'Of course I am!' the jester snapped. 'I am merely having a _hck!_' Whatever Dimentio was going to say was cut off by a agonized gasp. At the same moment Dimentio did so, Fawful's heart sent the most powerful wave of pain yet, and he fought to not react. He and Dimentio were experiencing the exact same pain. 'Con...continue!' the magician demanded breathlessly.

'Well...' Fawful heard a sound and imagined that Grubba was shifting nervously.

'C'mon slick, we don't have all day.'

'M'kay then.' The old man cleared his throat. 'It's not complete. I dunno how to make the energy fluctuations stable yet. Everything's failed so far and I had 'ta chuck the things a lot. They either just disappear or pop too, so I gotta put a bit more punch in 'em.'

'Impressive...either way...my minion...ah ha ha...' Dimentio breathed deeply, and Fawful sucked in whatever breath he could without being conspicuous.

'Heh heh, thank ya muchly!' Grubba beamed. 'Ya know, this ain't much different than my ol' energy suckin' machine. Same concept, same use of energy. There's just one big difference between the old machine and the new, and that's—'

_THUD!_

Everything stopped. Fawful's eyes widened in shock; he hadn't been able to help it, another burst of pain had travelled through him and he'd smacked his head against the door.

'What n' tarnation was that?'

'An interloper, it seems.' Dimentio ventured.

'I'll go get him!' Doopliss growled.

Fawful jumped up and flung himself against a wall. He knew it was a futile gesture, but...he couldn't be seen! He had to be missed...invisible.

'Huh?'

Doopliss had opened the door and looked out, yet had completely missed Fawful. Looking down, Fawful saw the cause: he was invisible after all. The Chaos Heart was really useful.

'What's goin' on?' Grubba peeked out. 'No one there after all eh?' He shrugged. 'Meh, probably just a bump. C'mon back in.'

As the door closed Fawful flipped briefly out of the dimension and back into his bed; if he could see where Dimentio was, then it could probably work in reverse. He let the invisibility slide off of him in the process. The pain in his heart was beginning to fade again. He pulled up his pyjama sleeve to the shoulder and was shocked to find the black veins all the way down to his elbow. Pulling up his pant leg revealed that they'd moved down to his knee.

'This has badness...' he muttered to himself. He thought of going back to sleep, but he wasn't going to be able to with these thoughts...and there was still one more thing to be sure of.

He exited his room quietly again and crept down the train to cabin 1 where Crubba was. He concentrated on his energy and thought very hard on moving through the wall; while he didn't particularly enjoy thinking about Dimentio's past, if he could move his hand magically through a princess' chest (he got a little queasy right here) he figured he could do the same with a wall.

And so he did.

It wasn't even intentional at first, he just walked right through the wall, feeling little more than a shiver and chill throughout his body as his atoms were scrambled and moved through the wall.

The room was just as dark as every other room he'd seen. He could, however, see the stout form of Crubba the Clubba snoring peacefully in his bed. Fawful huffed and left the same way he'd came. He supposed he could sleep at least a little bit more peacefully knowing that there was someone else on the train he could trust.


	28. Chapter 28: Suspicion

Chapter 28: Suspicion

Fawful

Despite the fact that O'Chunks' incredibly loud snoring made sleep almost impossible to obtain, Fawful was actually able to sleep a decent amount. O'Chunks himself was gone, presumably because Fawful had overslept and everyone else was up. By the morning the sunlight streamed through the window, shaded partly by the curtains that were still closed over the glass. Fawful glared at the sunlight; he didn't want to get up yet. The bed was far too comfortable.

Someone knocked at the door. The soft raps sounded like deafening crashes to Fawful's tender morning ears.

'Be going away!' he yelled. 'Do not be disturbing the ears of mine!' He pulled the blanket over his head, tugging his nightcap.

'Fawful?' It was Mimi. 'May I come in?'

'Hu?' Fawful immediately flung the blankets away, leaving them in a wrinkled heap. 'Yesing, have the entering!'

Mimi opened the door and walked in the room, rubbing her eyes. She wore the exact same pyjamas as Fawful did—plain blue t-shirt, pants, and nightcap—yet she looked far better in them than anyone else did. He was getting used to such views though. 'Hiya Fawfie...' She yawned and rubbed her eyes. 'How'd you sleep?' She flopped down onto the bottom bunk with the Bean. 'Did O'Chunks keep you awake all night?'

'With much surprise, I say to you no.' He yawned as well; yawns were contagious. 'His loud snoring of grossness did not have the keeping up of Fawful!' He grinned.

Mimi giggled. 'I remember, back in Castle Bleck, he'd actually keep ME up.' She groaned. 'I was next door.

'Luck of badness. Hee hee.' Fawful chuckled. 'Oh!' Fawful suddenly remembered several important things. He told Mimi everything he had discovered the night before, including the strange, unknown machine Grubba was making, the fact that Grubba, Doopliss, and Dimentio were most likely somewhere on the train, and that Crubba was _not_, in fact, Grubba. He kept the strange, red-haired girl to himself; he would have to look into her a little more before determining if she was dangerous.

'Things just keep getting worse and worse huh?' Mimi huffed. 'At least we've got people we _can_ trust.' She laid down on the bed and stared up at the underside of the top bunk. She stuck her index finger up in the air and traced the little patterns on it. 'And your veins, how are they?'

Fawful pulled up his sleeve. 'Here.'

Mimi tilted her head. 'Grambi...!' she breathed. 'They're growing much faster now...'

Fawful nodded. 'I am not knowing what it is meaning.' He laid down too, and did the same thing Mimi was.

'Have you tried...asking the Chaos Heart?' She spoke these words with a quiet fear.

Fawful nodded; he had a few times. 'I had the getting of an answer of nothingness.'

'So it's shut up has it? That's good.'

A silence passed.

'Um...how is being with the Princess of Peaches?' he asked her.

'Oh, Peach?' Mimi shrugged. 'She and I never really got along, so we don't talk much.'

'Ohing. Why?'

The green girl snickered. 'She was like, my arch nemesis or something back when I was all..."evil."' She stared into the air. 'She saved my life though. Or tried to. I would have been fine either way.' A smile took over her face. 'Maybe she wasn't so bad after all.' She stretched and hopped out of bed. 'Well, I'm gonna go and change. Breakfast is almost ready, so I'd go on out. Either way, you won't be able to get back to sleep.'

'O of the kay.' Fawful got out of bed, put on his glasses, and straightened up the blankets. As he turned around, Mimi gave him a hug, smiled, and turned to walk out. Fawful frowned. 'Mimi?' he called. When she turned, he asked, 'What relation are we having to each other?'

'Huh?' Realization dawned on her. 'Oh...uh...' She teetered on her feet. 'Well...I don't know.'

'We had the sharing of a...' Fawful's voice trailed off and he blushed.

'Yeah...' Mimi agreed, blushing as well.'

'Yet you are still having feelings for silly-clown...' he continued.

'...yeah...'

The two of them just stood there for a few minutes. 'Welling?' Fawful asked. 'I am not knowing.'

Mimi sighed and stared at the ceiling. 'It's hard,' she said finally, very quietly. 'To try and get all my feelings sorted out. Especially when I remember everything he's done...I feel like I'm a bad person for still feeling for him the way I do. I feel like I need to move on or I'll always feel this way...and I'm trying, I really am...'

There was an uncomfortable moment of silence between them; Mimi bit her nail nervously. Fawful gave a powerful look. 'I am knowing what I am feeling,' he said to her. 'That is enough for me.'

Mimi smiled. 'You're a great friend Fawful.' She hugged him again, and her voice dropped to a whisper. 'You're better than a friend...' The familiar warmth accompanied with anything Mimi spread through his body again and he smiled. 'Dimentio's still...still gotta be stopped. For sure. No matter what.'

_DING DONG!_ The intercom on the roof rang loudly. _'Hello hello, this is your engineer speaking!'_ a cheerful and unmistakably Toad-like voice sang out. _'A breakfast buffet is now being served in the dining car for your culinary needs! We hope you enjoy the selection of foods, all free with the payment of one hundred Mushroom Kingdom coins! For passengers from the Beanbean Kingdom, by today's exchange rate that comes out at...'_ There was a pause. _'...less than one Beanbean coin. Sorry for the inconvenience, but we will only be accepting Mushroom Kingdom currency on this journey today. That will be all!'_

'Well if you weren't awake already I guess you would be.' The green girl turned around. 'I'll see you at breakfast, okay?'

'O of the kay,' Fawful said, grinning his trademark, toothy grin. Mimi departed and Fawful got dressed; having put all his clothes in the washing and drying machine on the train during the night he was surprised how fresh and clean they were. Making sure he had his blaster on his hip and storage cube on the inside of his cloak, he departed for what he was sure was going to be the greatest breakfast he had ever eaten.

It most definitely was the greatest breakfast he had ever eaten. The dining car was filled to the brim with stands featuring all forms of breakfast foods: fluffy pancakes, steaming eggs, toasted bread, crunchy cereal, delicious tarts, crisp bagels, thick waffles, and other things. Chefs, including the head one, the Cheep-Cheep Chef Shimi, stood behind the stands' counters, ready to cook up whatever you may want. Many of the selections had any manner of spices, creams, and other toppings you could put on, a lot of which were things Cackletta would have punished him for eating at this time and said something along the lines of needing a healthy and not-fat toady for her wicked plans. Needless to say, the children on board the train were all over this stuff.

'Mom!' shouted a bronze-coloured Bob-Omb boy. 'I want this and that and this stuff and this chocolate and...'

'Yes dear,' said the small explosive's mother, a silver Bob-Omb wearing a fancy pink hat and similarly pink shoes. She looked preoccupied with a cell phone perched up against the side of her round form; how she kept it from falling over with no visible grip or hands of any sort and what exactly she was holding it up _to_ Fawful didn't know. 'I don't _care_ what it takes!' she suddenly shouted into the phone. Her voice dropped to just above a whisper. 'Yes yes, but this is _important_...' Nobody seemed to pay any mind to her.

A golden Bob-Omb looked at the display of food. He wore a black top hat and shoes, a small, similarly-coloured mustache grew (...out of a seemingly metal body, no less) below his eyes. 'I wonder if I could buy these...' he contemplated. He shook his head (?) and sighed. 'No no, no, I have a much more important task to do in Nautoville.' Fawful wasn't surprised that no one paid these three people much mind; Goldbob, Sylvia, and Bub, as they were named, were incredibly famous for being one of the richest families in the Mushroom Kingdom, if not the richest. Goldbobbington's, owned by exactly who you would expect it to be, was a company that brought in billions of coins annually. While almost everyone knew who they were, nobody actually cared if they met them or not; Goldbob's insurmountable wealth had become the envy of many, and most just turned them the cold shoulder unless directly spoken to by one of the three. Overthere forbid it be Sylvia, who could reduce your self-esteem to a mere pittance if she ever got into a conversation with you.

There were stands with people serving drinks as well. Various types of tea, and coffee were brewed, juice and milk of many different kinds were kept in jugs with cups stacked alongside, and then there was water for those who preferred more simple options. Even the _water_ was fancy and had many different kinds: normal water, spring water, flavoured water, carbonated water, vitamin water...they just went crazy with it all. Chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry milk were served as well, milkshake makers could be found in the car...there was no end to the things you could eat or drink here.

'...wow,' was all Fawful could say when he was finished taking it all in. His mouth was watering with anticipation; never before had he seen so much food in one place, and it all looked so _good_.

'Fawful!' Mimi's voice called. She weaved her way through the people and found him. 'What's up?'

'Food,' he said, flabbergasted. 'So much food...so much yum...'

'I know!' she agreed with a grin on her face. 'It's crazy!'

'How is this being paid for?' the Bean asked, remembering how they had dumped the bills on Mario the previous night.

'It's paid in advance. Peach said she'd cover the bill this time and told me not to sign anyone else's name on a bill ever again or she'd kick me out of the kingdom. Tee hee!' She giggled, putting a hand to her mouth.

'Everyone has villainy inside their insides, I am supposing,' Fawful noted with a smirk. He walked a bit and picked up a plate and utensils. 'I HAVE YUM!' he shouted to the heavens, and made his way to the chocolate.

It was delicious. It was the greatest breakfast ever. It had been filled with chocolate and sweets and pancakes and so many things that he felt slightly bloated. Only slightly though; there was something to be said about video game metabolism. He downed a glass of milk and leaned back in his chair, breathing out an "Aah~" of satisfaction.

'The sweet foods have the tickling of Fawful's taste buds!' he cried. 'Like tasty chocolate feathers. Hahaha!'

'Enjoying yourself?' Fawful spun around to meet the eyes of the red haired girl he had seen the previous night. 'It's not every day you get to pig out on those things, is it?' She gave a wry smile.

Fawful got up out of his seat and fixed her with a suspicious glare, making sure to keep his mind off of her in general; he didn't want a repeat of last night. What had that all been about anyway? 'Who are you,' he said carefully, 'to be disturbing the one who is me?'

'That's not very nice.' The smile hadn't left her face and Fawful left himself instinctively reaching for his blaster. 'I just noticed you last night, hanging around with this green girl. What's her name?'

Fawful hesitated, then relaxed a little; her question was harmless enough. 'Mimi,' he answered.

A slight look of recognition passed across her face, but Fawful didn't notice it enough for it to register. 'Oh. What a...cute name.'

The Bean frowned inwardly; there was something about this woman that he didn't like. He could almost feel a presence coming off of her body...much like the Chaos Heart. There was the way her eyes sparkled too, showing some sort of underlying trickery. Maybe it was just him. 'I am thinking so too.' He suddenly started as he realized what he had said and fought to hold back a blush; it wasn't easy.

'Oh, is she your little sweetheart? What a lucky little lady she is. Hahaha.'

'Fawful?' The boy almost jumped out of his skin; it was Mimi. 'Who's this?'

The woman regarded Mimi with a smile. 'Oh, nobody in particular,' she answered for him. 'I was just making conversation. I should be going now anyway.' She gave a small wave and departed.

The two green beings followed her path as she left. 'Who in the worlds is _she?_' the girl spat.

'I would like to have knowledge too...' the boy answered. 'I am not knowing.'

'I don't like her.'

Fawful didn't like her either, but that didn't mean she was dangerous. 'I have fullness,' he said, rubbing his stomach.

Mimi cast one more smouldering glare at the door where the red haired woman had left, then looked at Fawful. 'Lots of chocolate?'

Fawful almost grinned, then thought better of it; better to wait until he had the chance to brush. 'So much of the chocolate! And, uh, other things of many.'

'I don't think I've ever eaten so much in my _life_,' Mimi laughed.

The two of them later departed and Fawful was able to make time to brush his overly large teeth. He then left the car to go find the conductor, who was standing guard in front of the storage room.

'Hello sir,' he said politely. 'What's going on?' He saw Fawful peering at the door. 'Oh, you still can't go into the car. Mr. Crubba's working on his "secret project." Boy, I wonder what it is!' The Toad shivered with excitement.

'I am wishing to be knowing the location of a person of interest,' he told him.

The conductor frowned in incomprehension. 'You mean you want to know where one of our passengers are staying?' He told him yes. 'Well I know all of the passengers here sir, it's part of our policy!' He smiled proudly. 'Who's the person you're looking for?'

'She is being human,' he told him, 'with hair and eyes of redness and wearing clothes of blackness.'

'A human?' The conductor frowned again. 'I'm sorry sir, but the only humans aboard the train are in your party. The Mario Brothers, our dear Princess, the burly armoured guy, and the lady with the guy with blue skin.'

Fawful's frown echoed the conductor's. 'Do you have certainty?'

'Well...hang on, let me check.' The Toad pulled out a small rectangular machine out of Grambi-knows-where and ran his finger down the screen, humming a short, dissatisfied tune to himself. He put it back in Grambi-knows-where. 'Sorry, but there's no woman of that description on this train.'

'But there _is!_' the Bean insisted.

'Well then, there's no woman of that description on this train with a _ticket_. Which means that, if she's on this train, she's a stowaway.'

There was a sudden knocking on the storage car door. The conductor moved out of the way and opened it. Crubba walked out. 'Howdy fellas!' he greeted, tipping his large hat ever so slightly in greeting. 'Guard duty gettin' dismal yet?'

'No, sir!' the conductor beamed. 'Always happy to lend a hand!'

'Ha ha, that's what I like ta hear!' He turned to Fawful. 'And how 'bout you little feller, how's the train ride?'

'I do not have littleness!' Fawful growled angrily.

'Heh heh, a' course not! The question still stands though.'

'...I am enjoying this ride of train very much, thanking you.'

'HA, knew it!' The Clubba smacked his palms together. 'How was breakfast? I dunno 'bout you, but I sure love myself a good crepe or two.' He looked Fawful up and down carefully. 'Y'know, you seem like the type who'd tinker over some good ol' technology all day if 'e could, am I right?'

Fawful couldn't help but grin. 'I say to you, yes! I have had the making of many things of greatness!'

Crubba peered. 'Like that there gun on yer hip I take it?'

'Guh...GUN?' the conductor exclaimed.

'Now now, don't get yer 'lil diaper in a knot!' the Clubba laughed. 'This kid's got his reasons I'm sure, and he's travellin' with Gonzales, so he'll be all right.'

'Uh..."Gonzales," Mr. Crubba?'

'Whoops, I meant that Mario fella!' the man exclaimed sheepishly. 'Must'a confused 'im with someone else. Nastly lil' habit that.'

'Oh. Well, he _is_ with Mario...'

'Exactly!' Crubba turned to Fawful. 'C'mon inside the car kiddo, and I'll show you somethin' that'll make that lil' tuff 'a hair 'a yers curl in awe!' The two of them went inside and closed the door.

The storage room was dark, dimly lit by small, overhead lights. Boxes of various shapes and sized lined the walls, held in place by support beams. Even though it was far less fancy than the rest of the train, there was still a blue, checkered pattern on the floor of the room. At the far end was a door that opened up to the outside of the train which could further be taken to get on top of it.

'You just wait a moment now,' Crubba warned. 'This thing's a fragile lil' bugger an' I don't wantcha gettin' hurt on my watch.' He weaved his way through the boxes and rummaged for a bit before bringing out a small metal box with a lock on it. He took out a small, intricate key and twisted it in the lock. 'You wouldn't believe,' he said, 'how many people think I should be gettin' a better key, more modern.' He shrugged as well as he could given the thing he was holding. 'Phooey to them I say!' Opening the box, the Clubba took out an object just big enough to fit in the box it came out of.

It was rectangular in shape, gleaming yellow in the dim lamplight. Tons of things that appeared to be small, silver power cells were dotted around the sides. On the top of the thing was a perfectly spherical, empty hole with larger cells covering the inside in strips. Six yellow arm-like metal joints stick out from around the hole, each having a silver spike pointing to one spot in the air above it. Several buttons and switches could be seen around it, each performing a different function.

Fawful stared at the thing. 'What is that?'

'Thought you'd never ask!' the Clubba beamed. 'It's a lil' somethin' I call an "Energy Diffusion Reactor." You put something with power into here...' He pointed at the spot in the air where the spikes were pointing to. 'These six things here make a reaction to it and transfer the new energy into this hole here. The cells around the Reactor absorb the energy and change it more, superchargin' it. By the time it's done the energy is make about a hundred times more efficient than normal, so long as yer willing to crank a lil' bit of power into the machine externally. A single Starman could power the whole city a' Glitzville for a month, I kid you not!' He suddenly looked embarrassed. 'Or, uh, that's the idea anyway. I haven't completed it fully yet. Everythin' I put into it blows up, so chuckin' it outta there is what usually happens to the power source.' He pointed to the way out of the train.

'I have amazement!' Fawful grinned excitedly; the whole concept was brilliant, and Crubba hadn't even got into the technicalities! 'But...why does it not have completion?'

'Cause I gotta present it in Nautoville, ya mean? Well ya see...I'd been working on this for a while and booked my trip in advance before I started, thinkin' I'd be finished by the time it came around ta go. I, eh, wasn't.'

'Ohing.' Fawful looked at it again; it looked like Crubba had put a lot of work into it. 'Will it have completion soon?'

'If everythin' goes all hunky-dory, then it'll be done before we stop in Nautoville!' He grinned. 'Boy, doesn't it getcher blood-a pumpin'? Heh, well I'd better be off, which means you gotta skedaddle!'

'Wait!' the Beanish boy called. 'Did you have the seeing of anyone else?'

Crubba frowned. 'In here? No, no one.'

'What about another invention, one of wickedness?'

'...' The Clubba's frown deepened. 'Where you gettin' these here ideas from, kiddo?'

'I had the hearing,' Fawful whispered, 'of three people of villainy in here on the night of yesterday. They had the talking about an invention.'

'You WHAT?' he roared.

'Wh...wha?'

'Ya don't just go skulkin' 'round a train at night ya lil' moron! Who knows what you might do?'

'I...I needed to have the knowing—'

'Never you mind!' The man picked up the device and put it back in the box, locking it. He shuffled around and put it back where it was. 'Stupid punk, messin' around with my business...' he seethed. 'I told you, my stuff is FRAGILE! What do ya think's gonna happen if ya break the darn things?'

'B-but, the people of badness—'

'_I ain't got a __**clue**__ what yer talkin' about! Go away!_'

'...but—'

'_**SCRAM!**_'

Fawful ran as fast as his little feet could carry him.


	29. Chapter 29: Crushing Pain

Chapter 29: Crushing Pain

Dimentio

'We'll be stopping at Nautoville's pit stop later on in the afternoon,' Esmine said. 'Says the conductor at least.' She chuckled. 'It's so fun messing with minds. A simple charm is all you need to make someone forget you were even there.' She snapped her dainty fingers, a spark of black magic flaring up from them.

'You seem to be a natural,' Dimentio noted from his vantage point in mid air. 'I suppose being a demon to begin with heightens one's magical abilities.'

Esmine looked away, her face shadowed. 'I hate that word. "Demon." It's so...horrible.'

'And you really believe you're any more human than I? You seduce poor, unsuspecting young men, then when you're finished with them you end their lives.'

'Not...ALL the time—'

'And _I_...' the jester interjected. 'I hurt, maim, and murder, seeking the destruction of all things by the Void's eternal hunger for nothingness.' He smiled, looking Esmine's way. 'What else are we, but senseless monsters?'

'We still have emotions though,' Esmine argued calmly. 'Other than hate and uncompassionate rage. We can feel happiness and joy, we can think rationally, we...um, _I_ can love. You can't.'

'Ah ha ha...yes, yes. Perhaps we are merely dedicated to our goals.' Dimentio noticed Esmine fiddling with Rosalina's magical wand and realized that he hadn't checked up on her.

'Rosalina's fine,' the succubus said as if she had read his mind. 'I can feel her presence whenever I hold this. She's still in the castle, and hasn't moved since we left.'

'...I'm not sure whether a connection with her is reassuring or disturbing.'

'She talks to me sometimes. Only little questions, like "How are you?" It's...strange. She's a captive of ours, and yet she talks to me like I'm an old friend of hers.'

'Perhaps I should choose disturbing.' The magician tapped the cheek of the mask that rested on his face idly.

Esmine was looking at his masked face with curiosity. 'I have a question,' she stated plainly.

'Perhaps I have an answer for you.'

'Why do you wear that mask?'

Dimentio raised an eyebrow (though this was not nearly as apparent to Esmine). 'I'm not quite sure what you mean.'

'People wear masks to hide things about themselves. They wear facemasks to hide their identity, they put masks over their hearts to hide their emotions, they have mental masks to hide their personalities. Everyone who wears some kind of mask has something to hide.' She didn't smile or grin in that sly way that she usually did—her expression remained calm, yet curious—yet her eyes sparkled. 'What are _you_ hiding?'

Dimentio didn't answer for a very long time. His face remained trained on the cabin floor, his ears listening to the silent humming of the wheels on the tracks. It was an interesting question to be sure, one that made him think more than he had in a long while. Finally, he spoke; when he did, his voice was quiet. 'There is nothing more frightening than the unknown. No one likes not knowing everything. It frustrates us and, even more so, scares us. A monster in plain view is far less frightening than one hidden by darkness. A high school exam is far less stressful when one knows the questions that will be on it. I am not so known. I am not hidden in plain sight, but rather, in a blanket of darkness. I am enigmatic, mysterious...my mental capabilities know no bounds, the lengths I will go to go well past insane. I instil fear into the hearts of my enemies, I cause even the most calm and collected heroes and the most hardened criminals to hesitate to fight me...and why? Because when they look at me...when they look at this mask...they don't know what they see. I am a mystery, and my mask is a mere physical extension of that.' He turned to her and smiled. 'Nothing more...nothing less.'

At last, the grin he knew Esmine wanted to make was made. 'That's very interesting...I didn't expect that answer.'

'And what answer _did_ you expect?' Dimentio asked.

'Well, I met Mimi today, and...what was _that?_'

Dimentio had suddenly started, stumbling where he floated and smacked against the ground, grabbing onto the bunk bed for support. 'You _what?_' he hissed. She had "met Mimi?" The comment had come out of nowhere, and Dimentio hadn't been expecting it at all; it had hit him like a slap to the face.

'I said I...' Esmine laughed smugly. 'I met Mimi today. I don't really get what you see in her, but based on what is so painfully obvious about you I think you wear that mask to hide your emotions. You block out your feelings, just like the Chaos Heart is literally doing with love. You're scared to be betrayed again and you're hiding all your compassion...from others, AND from yourself.'

'Nonsense...' The jester's heart was beating wildly and he struggled to his feet. 'What do you know?'

'Dimentio, I've been alive for over a thousand years,' the girl said with a sigh. 'You don't think that I haven't picked up emotional traits in people by _now_, do you?' The magician just growled. 'If you want her so much, why don't you let the love come back? Why not make her _yours_...just like you want.' A shadow passed over her face and she had what looked like a small glare on her face for a moment; oh the wonders of female jealousy.

'I...will never...love..._again_...' he seethed angrily. 'Don't you understand? Love is just something that will get in the way, and I will _not_ let three thousand years of effort go to waste over my emotions!' Silently, Dimentio was berating himself once again; he knew Esmine was right, and he hated it.

'It's written all over your face,' Esmine said. 'Why can't you have her _and_ your perfect world?'

The jester hesitated, then sighed and straightened himself up. 'I recall a time when I thought that might work...but that girl has made her allegiance perfectly clear. I will rule alone.'

'What about Doopliss and Grubba and I? We're helping you.'

'Ha...ahahaha...HA! Of course, of course, you too shall reap the rewards for helping me. A perfect world free of strife...and no more murderers to kill unsuspecting little boys.'

Esmine started. 'My brother...' She sighed. 'It's too bad that murderer isn't alive. I'd—'

'You would kill him yourself, yes. However, that is not an option and the only thing we _can_ do is prevent the universe from repeating itself again. No more strife.'

'Yeah,' the girl agreed. 'No more strife.'

_'And no more distracting little girls,'_ the Chaos Heart added slyly.

Dimentio winced as his heart pounded, sending a fresh burst of the love-deprived pain through his body.

Fawful

Fawful's legs couldn't carry him away fast enough. When he had come bursting out of the storage car running breathlessly for what felt like his life, the conductor had looked on in bafflement. The boy himself didn't even really know why he was _running_...only that Crubba had scared the wits out of him. The fact that someone could raise such a fuss at such an old age...

It reminded him of another Clubba he knew.

He would have been a lot more suspicious had he not seen Crubba sleeping in his cabin on the very night Grubba was in the storage car. It was conclusive proof, if anything...but he would still have to be on his guard.

Suddenly, Fawful felt his feet hit something very hard and fell forward, smacking his face against the floor of the train. 'Ouches...' he muttered after the initial pain subsided.

'Um...could you move please?'

Fawful got up and turned around angrily to the thing that had caused him to fall: Bub the bronze Bob-Omb. 'What is the idea that has bigness of yours, little explosive who is getting on the nerves of Fawful?'

'You tripped over me!' Bub retorted.

'Hng...' Fawful groaned, facepalming. 'This has pointlessness...'

The two stood their awkwardly for a few moments. 'Uh...did you like the food?'

'Yesing,' the Bean replied. 'And what of you?'

'You bet I did! But...' The little bomb made a strange gesture that slightly resembled looking downward in embarrassment. 'I think I ate too much. My stomach hurts.'

'You are having a stomach?' For some reason it had never occurred to Fawful that Bob-Ombs had any internal organs.

'Yeah, why wouldn't I?'

More awkward silence.

'Y'know,' Bub said after a short time. 'You don't seem as evil as people say you are.'

Fawful sighed and slumped. 'I am having a...a break.' He decided not to get into a lengthy conversation.

'Can you _do_ that?'

'Yesing, now cease with the talking.'

'Hey,' the Bob-Omb said, completely disregarding Fawful's command. 'Did you see that weird lady with the red hair today?'

The Beanish boy started. 'Where is she being located?' he demanded.

'Whoa, don't yell at me!'

'JUST HAVE THE TELLING OF ME!'

'WAAAAH!'

It went on like this for about a minute. Finally, Fawful sighed and tried speaking calmly. 'Which cabin is the lady of red-hairedness having the sleeping in?'

'Uh...well, I saw her heading to cabin 1. I think that's where she's staying.'

Fawful started. '...the cabin in which the Clubba of richness is staying?'

'That Crubba guy? Yeah, that's the same cabin. Why, do you know those two?'

The Bean frowned. 'I am having a feeling of suspiciousness again...' He turned around towards the end of the hall. 'I have the thankings.'

'Wait a sec!' Bub cried. 'I wanna ask you something.'

Fawful sighed inwardly and turned around. 'Yesing?'

'You're with Mario, right?' Fawful nodded. 'And that means you're gonna stop that big thing in the sky from killing all of us right?' After a moment's hesitation, Fawful nodded again. 'Okay...so, why do you want to find that lady? Is she a bad person?'

'I am not knowing...yet. That is what I am wanting to find out.'

'Be careful...' the Bob-Omb said, worried. 'She's...weird.'

Fawful remembered the strange reaction he had had to meeting her eyes and silently agreed with the small boy. 'I will have carefulness.'

'All right, thanks.' He turned and waddled off to his cabin. Fawful set off in the opposite direction, determined to find out everything he wanted to know about her.

He knocked three times. Three brisk raps, sending a dull _thunk_ through the door each time. When no one answered, he just opened the door himself, walking right in and shutting the door behind him.

The cabin was empty. Crubba was nowhere to be seen, and the red-haired girl wasn't either. He took a seat on the couch and crossed his arms; he would wait until one of them showed up. He waited for twenty minutes straight, closing his eyes and yawning. Finally, he heard a voice.

'Boy you're patient.' Fawful's eyes snapped open and he looked towards the door; the red-haired girl was there again, this time wearing a different black dress with short sleeves. White ribbons were tied around her knee and elbow joints and small black boots were on her feet. She idly played with one of the ribbons, leaning against the door; her red eyes shimmered mischievously. 'You've been here for what, twenty minutes?'

'You!' Fawful spat. 'Who are you and what do you want with the one who is me?'

'Now now...don't be so hasty to judge me. I haven't done anything to you yet.'

'Yet?'

'Yes...not _yet_...surely that isn't too bad, hm?' She smiled and her eyes began to glow; suddenly, all of Fawful's suspicions and anger left him immediately. He smiled contently; of course it wasn't too bad. After all, she hadn't done anything to him. She was an innocent...and such a pretty one...

'No...' the young Bean agreed, chuckling nervously. 'No badness.'

'See? Nothing's wrong with just being gorgeous right?' The glow intensified and Fawful's heart suddenly pounded with fear and embarrassment; he gave a quiet yelp and stepped backwards.

'N...n-no, nothing has wr-wrongness...' he stuttered. What a beautiful woman, and here he was acting like an idiot, accusing her of things she didn't do! Stupid!

'Are you okay...Fawful?' She smiled endearingly and the boy's heart melted into putty. 'I don't want to upset you...'

'N-no!' Fawful shouted loudly. 'Y-you are not upsetting Fawful, I have promising!'

'Good, thank you.' She laughed sweetly. 'You're cute Fawful.'

'Cu...cute?' The Bean blushed. 'I have cuteness...?'

'Yes!' the lady beamed. 'Yes, you are...' She stepped closer. 'I like cute boys, you know...'

'...u-uh...ha...hahaheheh...' Fawful smiled widely. 'I have nervous...ness...'

'You don't _have_ to...' she pouted. 'That's no fun.'

'B-but—'

'Then again,' she cut in, running a finger up his chin, causing him to shiver and gulp. 'There's a certain...appeal...' Her eyes pierced his heart, filling it with overflowing love and adoration. He wanted her...he _needed_ her. She was all he needed, forever. Nothing else mattered. Nothing.

And then, suddenly, she leaned forward and kissed him passionately. His whole being exploded with a youthful euphoria, making his heart leap and his body warm with ecstasy. He couldn't help it; he returned her affections, savouring every second, not caring about anything else in the world. This was perfect...utter rapture.

Then the door to the cabin opened and the new arrival gasped. A full five seconds passed before the woman noticed anything and broke the kiss, all the gleam and power draining from her gaze. 'Oh,' she said. 'Hi.'

All the feelings Fawful had been filled to the brim with were suddenly sucked out of his heart as if with a straw, leaving a confused emptiness. He gaped at the woman for a second and then turned sideways to see the person who had walked in. When he did, his heart did a back flip and his skin paled.

Mimi was standing in the doorway, her eyes wide and her hand covering her open mouth. '...you...you didn't...' Her voice was small and hurt; tears had begun forming in her eyes.

'Oh, is he your _boyfriend?_' she asked, her voice mocking in an infuriatingly sly manner. 'Sorry...I had no idea.'

'You...you just...' Mimi still couldn't form her sentences.

'M...Mimi,' Fawful whispered, horrified. What had he just done?

Mimi clenched her hand into a fist and dropped it down; her face was contorted with sheer rage, the tears still present on her cheeks. 'I _HATE _YOU!' she screamed. 'I can't believe it! I can't believe you'd do this to me! I thought we had something!'

'Mimi!' Fawful cried again in despair. This couldn't be happening; he didn't know what was going on.

'YOU _LIAR!_' she howled. 'You're a horrible, horrible person! I hate you I hate you I HATE YOU!'

'N-no!' the Bean yelled. 'Mimi, I have—'

He barely had enough time to duck as a Rubee soared through the air and sliced right through the window, shattering a hole in it. 'GO BACK TO THE UNDERWHERE!' she bawled. 'IT'S WHERE YOU BELONG!'

The words hit Fawful like a punch to the gut. He winced and looked on in grief as Mimi turned around and ran away, slamming the door shut behind her.

He spun around to the red-haired woman, looking at her incredulously. 'What?' she said. 'It's not my fault your emotions got the better of you?' The grin on her face was nothing short of sadistic. '_Was_ it?' She chuckled and waved him goodbye. Fawful growled at her and ran out of the room.

Esmine snickered, snapping her fingers like Dimentio so often did; a spark of black electricity crackled. She loved being a succubus sometimes.

Mimi

Mimi slammed the door to her cabin shut, eyes squinted shut, breathing deeply. Peach wasn't in the cabin, which was all the better. She stumbled over and fell onto the couch, crying.

_How _could_ he?_ she thought furiously over and over. _How could he do that? I thought he...I thought I..._ It wasn't fair. She had finally found someone to give her heart to and he went and...she didn't want to think about the image, but she couldn't help it.

Fawful had cheated on her.

_'What relation are we having to each other?'_

Nothing. There was nothing between them, not anymore. Fawful had seen to that.

_'We had the sharing of a...'_

Mimi slammed her fists down on the couch's cushiony surface; that Grambi-forsaken scum! What had she meant to him? He had told her...that he loved her.

Obviously he hadn't.

Had she loved him? She thought she had, but...

She shook, getting up from the couch and briskly walking to window ledge. She slammed her fists on the ledge. 'I hate you!' she screamed. 'I hate you Fawful! I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!'

She hated Fawful.

She hated Fawful.

She hated Fawful.

She hated Dimentio.

'Everything is _your_ fault!' she sobbed. 'If you hadn't come back to life none of this would be happening! The Void wouldn't be in the sky, Fawful wouldn't even _be_ here, Nastasia wouldn't be dead, and I could have gone on working at Merlee's Mansion in peace without risking my _life_ for _everyone!_ I hate you, I hate you, I HATE YOU!'

She stopped; she had switched people unintentionally. Then she started; there was someone else's reflection in the glass besides her own:

Dimentio's.

She spun around to find...nothing. Nobody was there. Nobody...and yet she knew there was. She could feel it.

'I hate you...' she whispered. Then her heart pounded and anger welled up inside her. 'I hate you!' she screamed. 'I can't believe I ever loved you! I HATE YOU!'

Silence. Perhaps Mimi had been wrong after all. She considered this for a moment before another voice from nowhere broke that train of thought; a voice she knew too well.

_'No,'_ said Dimentio solemnly. _'No, you don't.'_

Mimi, thinking without truly thinking, grabbed the pillow from the bed and hurled it to where she heard the voice. It flew unstopped and smacked into the wall on the other side of the room. 'Yes I do!' she shrieked.

_'Your heart cries out to me,'_ the jester continued. _'Your heart needs me...'_

'N-no! No it doesn't!' The girl was in hysterics.

_'It welcomes me...just as mine rejects you.'_

An audible _ping!_ sound filled the air for a split second; Dimentio had warped away.

The sun had begun to really sink beyond the horizon by the time the train stopped and the conductor's voice came over the intercom telling everyone to disembark while the train refuelled at the station. The second day was ending. After that, there would be only one more before they arrived at Nautoville. Then...the final item. The last ingredient to the Purity Heart. Then they could stop Dimentio. Only then.

Fawful had knocked on her door plenty of times throughout the rest of the day's journey, desperately begging for an apology, but she wouldn't give him one. He had betrayed her. He hadn't killed anyone else, he hadn't helped Dimentio, but he had betrayed her. He had betrayed her heart, and she would never forgive him for that. So it was that when she opened the door and made to go out, she ignored Fawful completely.

As far as the station went, it was impressive. Large by its standards and very technological, it had a very urban look to it, almost futuristic. The entrance to the building was automatic double doors that opened when you approached, and the inside had various shops for souvenirs and the like. Thankfully there were restrooms for those who didn't trust the ones on the Excess Express, and Mimi bought a brand new dress to change into, flipping the old one out of the dimension.

'Keep the change,' Mimi said upon showing him the large Rubee she conjured out of thin air.

The red-haired girl that she had seen was nowhere around the station. She did see the rest of her friends, as well as Crubba and the rest of the other passengers though. Crubba was laying in a rocking chair by the entrance to the station; its antique look was out of place with the rest of the building.

'Howdy-do, 'lil girly?' he called.

'Hi Crubba,' she said half-heartedly.

'Hey now,' he said. 'I can hear some grief righ' there. What's on yer mind?'

'Uh...' Mimi shifted. 'I don't think I want to talk about it.' A pit had formed in her chest.

'Ya sure? Talkin' can help.' He leaned forward and spoke quietly. 'S'it trouble with that 'lil Beany boy o' yours?'

Mimi started, then nodded. 'Yeah, he...well...I don't really want to...'

'All right all right,' Crubba replied. 'Ya don't wanna talk about it, I understand. I don't really know how ta deal with boy trouble anyway, hyuk hyuk!' He chuckled. 'Sorry, always laughin' at the worst times.' He got up and stretched.

'What's with the chair?' the girl asked, desperate to change the subject.

'Oh, this?' The Clubba got up and looked at it. 'Thing was here when I got here.'

'Doesn't seem to fit the mood,' Mimi noted.

'Aye...that it doesn't.'

_POOF!_ Suddenly, the chair was engulfed in purple smoke and a white Duplighost appeared. 'SURPRISE!' he yelled. 'Guess who it is, slick?'

'WHAT N'TARNATION?' Crubba sputtered.

'Doopliss!' Mimi exclaimed, already conjuring up a Rubee.

'Hey now, don't go throwing that around!' the Duplighost warned. 'People might overhear.' He rocketed into Mimi's stomach, knocking the wind out of her and throwing her back onto the ground. 'Hyuk hyuk! Smell ya later!' He ran off. The ensuing sounds of alarm told Mimi that Mario and the rest of them had seen Doopliss and were giving chase, but she was too winded to give much notice.

'Fink-rat!' Fawful screeched at the top of his lungs. 'Have the dying and be getting it over with! GAAAAH!' Utter rage filled his words, which was transferred into a large explosion which caused several people to scream.

Mimi heaved herself off the ground and wiped her watering eyes on her arm. Every one of her friends plus Fawful had given chase, with Doopliss hooting and hollering with glee at the chase. 'Stupid freak...' she muttered, before taking to the air and shooting off after them all.

They were quite far from the station by the time the fight actually started. Doopliss stopped, turned around, and shot at Mario, smashing him into Luigi. Mimi hit the ground feet first and threw a Rubee at him, which collided with the ghost's head.

'Hey!' he groaned. 'That hurt!'

'That's the point!' Mimi shot.

'Well, I'm not fighting alone, that's for sure!' A two-dimensional box appeared and flipped around, revealing the portly form of Midbus. 'We'll double-team all of you!'

'Muh muh muh,' Midbus laughed. 'You will all be squashed. Then you will cry.' He smashed his fists together. 'And then you will DIE!'

'Bring it, ya big luggin' pig!' O'Chunks challenged, running at Midbus. The pig rolled into a ball and smashed into the armoured man while Doopliss flew up and turned into a stone Chain Chomp just as Mario punched him.

'YAAARGH!' the plumber howled in pain. Luigi jumped off his head and stomped down on Chain Chomp-Doopliss' top, driving him into the ground. A poof of smoke exploded from the small impact crater and a huge golden Banzai Bill came shooting out of it. Mimi shot a dozen Rubees at it and it blew itself to pieces. The party-hatted Duplighost fell from seemingly nowhere in the sky and plopped down on the ground. Mario, still clutching his fist, ran at Doopliss with a vengeance. The ghost couldn't react quickly enough before the hero brought his fist in an uppercut to his face. Doopliss flew up into the air; Mario spun around, took out an Ice Storm and crushed it in his hand. Holding both his palms in the air, a freezing gale of icy wind blew everywhere. Ice shards battered Doopliss' and Midbus' bodies, slicing at their bodies and causing them to roar in pain, while the Ice Storm's particles passed harmlessly through his teammates, sparkling in the setting sunlight.

'Nrgh...' Midbus grunted. 'You are a coward. Battle without items!'

Mario wiped some snow off his glove and onto his overalls. 'Luigi, how about it?'

Without another word he leaped into the air, flipping upside down. Luigi ran underneath him and jumped up, grabbing Mario's hands. Bouncing off of the ground, Luigi spun in the air, spinning Mario with him. After a few quick spins Luigi sent his older brother rocketing towards Midbus, both of them yelling 'YAHOOOOO!' Midbus curled up into an armoured ball; Mario collided feet first, sending a tremor through Midbus even in the state he was in and shooting him off. Bowser withdrew into his shell and Midbus smashed into him, making him ricochet up into the air. O'Chunks jumped up and brought both his fists down upon the pig, making him crash into Doopliss who up until then had been contending with Blumiere and Timpani.

'I never knew you could...fight,' Blumiere said, surprised.

'Thought I was just another pretty face?' Timpani smiled. 'I'm not too helpless you know.'

'BRAAAAGH!' Midbus bellowed. 'YOU WILL BE CRUSHED!'

'Yeah!' Doopliss huffed. He disappeared into another poof of purple smoke and a second Midbus was among them. 'You will be crushed.'

Doopliss-Midbus rolled into a ball and regular Midbus pulled out a chain from Hammerspace, attaching his lookalike to it. 'Fury,' Midbus boomed. 'I have fury.'

Fawful made a sound that sounded like phlegm in his throat. 'Steal the catchphrase of Fawful? Then you shall have DEATH!' He rocketed towards them, his Headgear's mouth agape. Mimi snarled and took off after him, Rubees appearing in her hands.

'Death is not mine,' Midbus countered. 'Now, you eat death!' He heaved the chain up in the air and spun it around, smashing aside a few Rubees thrown by Mimi and bringing the makeshift mace upon Fawful at full force. He flung his hands out in front of his face and squeezed his eyes shut, instinctively bracing himself for the bone-crushing impact. His Headgear opened its mouth wider than Mimi would have thought was possible and took the full brunt of the blow; Doopliss-Midbus became lodged halfway in the helmet's throat, with Fawful being forced to the ground by the weight. He held up the Headgear's mouth with his hands and strained to make sure his legs didn't give out on him.

Mimi had half a mind to let him struggle; the jerk deserved it after all the things he had done.

Then again, he was probably going to kill himself under all that weight.

Not such a bad thought really...

No! He was an ally, like it or not, and she wasn't going to abandon him because of her emotions!

She ran beside him and a poof of purple pixelated smoke enveloped her. Her body underwent a strange instant tingling and burning and when the smoke cleared she was Bowser. With all her might she punched the underside of the Headgear's jaw, popping Doopliss-Midbus out.

Fawful slumped, gasping for breath; he was sweating profusely. 'Th...thanking...you...M-Mimi...'

With another poof she was back to normal. 'Don't mention it.' She snapped her fingers and two Rubees appeared in her hands. Fawful deactivated his Headgear, making the neck retract and the head close its eyes. He took his blaster out from its holster and switched it on. The rest of their allies backed them up. 'I think they're done for anyway.

Doopliss transformed back to normal, injuries reflected on his face. 'Ugh...that was some powerful punch...'

'Muh muh muh. Not too strong.' Midbus was beginning to become spent as well, however.

'You're finished!' Luigi shot. 'We beat you guys!'

'Muh muh. No. Not finished. Only just begun.' He raised his meaty arms up high. 'He comes now, to destroy.' Darkness had begun to leak from the pig's fingertips, spraying up into the air like a smog. 'He waits for me to call him, if things get bad. Things are bad. So I will call him.'

Mimi knew exactly who "he" was; he needed no introduction, and the thought set her heart pounding. 'OH NO YOU DON'T!' she screamed. 'THAT CLOWN'S STAYING _PUT!_' She performed an awkward dimensional flip as she conjured up more Rubees in the air around her, appearing right in front of Midbus. Before she could strike, Doopliss head butted her out of the way.

'Don't think so, slick-ette!' he challenged. 'He's our boss, you know?'

The cloud of darkness had begun to intensify and clump together into something almost solid. 'Now, with him we will crush you!'

'...damn,' Mimi spat, running out of any other words to use.

_'Ahahahahaha!'_ Dimentio's laughter echoed through the battlefield, making everyone brace themselves. _'And so I am called for an encore! Well, who am I to disappoint? I say...'_ The dark bubble burst, revealing once again the one behind all of their troubles. 'On with the show!'

He wasted no time; a loud clapping of the hands set simultaneous explosions off right on every one of the heroes. Mimi shrieked in pain and Fawful jumped back in surprise. Mario and Luigi shook themselves off after the initial blasts and ran into the fray.

'We'll just beat you again!' Luigi shouted, his Thunderhand coming to life, bright blue sparks crackling across his fingers. 'Just like all the other times!' Jumping up into the air, he shot blasts of lightning at the jester, who dodged the blows like they were nothing. Mario ran underneath him, his Firebrand blazing around his palms. Echoing his brother's tactic, he jumped into the air and scorched Dimentio from behind. He writhed in pain, creating an opening for Luigi to attack him as well. The electricity sent him into midair spasms.

'Haha...HA!' Dimentio spat. 'Your efforts are futile.' He snapped his fingers. 'Midbus! Doopliss! I think I'll give you some incentive.' Black lightning bolts struck them, filling them with power.

'MUH MUH MUH!' Midbus laughed deeply. 'Strength. I like it.'

'Now it's _go time_, slicks!' Doopliss laughed, wicked excitement forming his words. With a lightning fast jump forward he rammed himself into the earth, disappearing into a hole. Midbus leaped up into the air with newfound ability and rolled into his ball, black spikes appearing all over his body.

'EEEEK!' Peach screamed as the minion came down upon her. In one swift movement she had her parasol open and covering her; Midbus bounced off of it like a trampoline, the silk canopy absorbing every inch of the crushing blow.

'Oh, you wanna play rough?' Bowser roared. 'Well two can play at that game!' Bowser mimicked Midbus, rolling up into a ball using his shell, his trademark spikes adorning all sides. The two super powerful villains collided head on, crashing off of each other and rattling each other's brains. They both turned abruptly, with Bowser nearly running over Fawful in his blind assault.

'Fink-rat!' Fawful cursed. 'Be watching where you are going!'

The two brutes clashed and rebounded, neither of them coming out on top over the other. They unrolled and faced each other, gasping.

Fawful activated his Headgear again and shot off over Bowser, landing in front of Midbus. 'Koopa who is king!' he called behind him. 'I will have the fighting of him!'

'Oh no, this guy's mine! I'll kick his butt into next Thurs—'

_'URNGH!' _The voice of a loud, booming Thwomp echoed through the air as one exploded out of the ground and threw Bowser into the air.

Master and minion stared into the sky as the Thwomp turned itself around and crashed into the ground, flattening Bowser under its weight. In the brief moment that it was on the ground, Doopliss' eyes and mouth could clearly be seen taking up where a regular Thwomp's face would be. It shot off into the sky, leaving the king groaning on the ground.

'Fawful,' Midbus boomed. 'You will hurt like him.'

'PAH!' Fawful spat. 'Traitorous fink-rats will feel the fury of Fawful!'

The Bean fired a dozen quick shots from his Headgear and took to the skies. Hurling his round, silver explosives down, Midbus was assaulted with a flurry of explosions. 'Hahaha! Come have the getting of me!'

'Hmph,' Midbus grunted, shaking himself off. 'I will.' And Midbus did. An aura of darkness surrounded him and lifted him up into the air. He cracked his fists menacingly. 'Now you will die.'

Fawful gulped. 'Uh...' he started, then ducked abruptly as the pig sailed over his head. Spinning around, he flew up to Midbus and rammed into his stomach Headgear-first. The minion's portly stomach made him bounce right off into the ground. Midbus rolled into a ball and became engulfed by the darkness; like a huge fireball, he soared at the unfortunate Bean, who bent his head backwards and sent himself rocketing along the ground. He skidded across the earth, sending a burning pain across his back. He flipped over and landed, crying out in pain. 'OUCHES!' he yelled. 'It brings the pain of hurt!'

_CRASH!_ Midbus smashed into the ground right in front of him, unrolling and punching him with overwhelming power. He fell to the ground, with Midbus standing over him. 'Muh muh muh,' he laughed. 'Now you die.' He punched downward, only for his fist to be swallowed by the scientist's Headgear. 'Gnh...let go!' He flung his arm into the air, a very dizzy Fawful being flung twice as hard. The world spun and jerked around him as the pig tried vainly to shake the mechanical mouth off of him, the metal teeth sinking into his chubby arm.

'AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUGH!' Fawful screamed in terror. 'H...H...HEADGEAR! L-L-LET GOOOOO!' Headgear complied, releasing its death grip on the Bean's enemy, which sent him hurtling in another direction. 'AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUGH!' he screamed in terror again.

_'URNGH! URNGH! URNGH!'_ Thwomp-Doopliss crashed down upon Bowser again and again, the helpless Koopa King taking all of the stony impacts.

'Mario, Luigi, you have to help Bowser!' Peach cried. 'He's getting killed!'

'How?' Luigi exclaimed. 'Doopliss'll flatten us!'

'I have an idea!' Mario said. 'C'mon Luigi, get next to Bowser and hold out your hands! Peach, you jump onto mine and get out your parasol!'

'You are gonna get me _killed_ one of these days,' the green plumber mumbled under his breath.

Luigi, Mario, and Peach ran as fast as they could to Bowser's side. Luigi put up his hands, Mario jumped up and put his hands up, and Peach hastily got up on Mario's, getting her parasol open just as Doopliss came back down.

_'URNGH!'_ The Thwomp bounced right off Peach's parasol and back up into the air, giving them enough time to pull Bowser to safely and for Luigi to crack Doopliss in half with a powerful thunderbolt. The two pieces hit the ground and burst into smoke, converging and revealing Doopliss as he normally was. 'What a _rush!_' he cackled. 'You shmucks don't stand a chance...not a _single_ chance!' He flung his arms into the air and two shadowy Dooplisses appeared. Their cloaks billowed in the wind, red eyes glowing. They shot themselves forward in the air, smashing their heads into all three of the heroes. Luigi recovered with a flip and a feet first landing while Mario hit the ground rolling and caught a gasping Peach.

'...o-ouch...' she rasped.

'I'll protect you,' Mario vowed as the two Doopliss doppelgangers advanced. 'We aren't done yet.' He laid her on the ground and clenched his fists. 'Come on, fight me!' he yelled. They both flew at him and Mario flipped up into the air, kicking one in the face and grabbing one by the cloak, throwing it down to the ground. He landed over Peach and let his Firebrand engulf his hands, leaping over her and driving his burning palm into the stomach of one of the shadowy foes, then pivoting abruptly and ramming his skull down onto the other that had come to fight. A huge fist slammed into his back and turned back into a Doopliss clone, which then turned into a Chain Chomp. The older brother put his hands out and stopped himself from fully hitting the ground. He grabbed Peach's parasol and whirled around; the dark Chain Chomp bounced right off with a humorous _BOINK!_ He closed the parasol and used it as a bludgeon to fend off the other clone. There were several poofs of black smoke and then there were four Dooplisses facing him.

Peach rolled over onto her stomach, trying to get herself up off the ground. 'Mario...are you okay?'

'I'm fine,' he assured her. He slammed the parasol into the head of a clone, then dropped it and jumped on another's head. Two transformed into Bullet Bills to which he quickly swung his Ultra Hammer at, blowing them both to smithereens. 'Just gotta keep fighting...for Peach...!' he grunted to himself.

_Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof!_ More Doopliss replicas were appearing, now a grand total of ten. They all cackled evilly, jumping and transforming into various creatures; still, the hero fought them off. He was, however, tiring, and that was apparent in his movements. One Doopliss transformed into a steel Cleft and jumped onto his back hard; he heard bones snap and crack under the weight.

Mario screamed in agony, a burning, white hot pain exploding up his spine and across his body as the largest part of his entire nervous system was shattered. His vision blanked and he heard the cackling of the ten Doopliss clones, reverberating in their shadowed vocal chords.

'Mario!' Peach screamed. She struggled to her feet and grabbed her parasol. She swung it, bonking one of the clones on the head. It spun around angrily and smashed the princess to the ground. Peach screamed as the nine available clones advanced on her.

Suddenly, one of them gave a yelp as a pair of clawed hands grabbed it and literally tore it in half, throwing the pieces onto the ground which splattered in a gooey mess. 'GRAAH!' Bowser, the King of the Koopas, burned them all with his fiery breath, melting them into a paste. 'No one messes with my Peach!' he growled. The one dealing with Mario turned back to normal and dove at him, only to be met with a bone-shattering punch. He walked over to Mario. 'Hey,' he said. 'You alive?' Mario groaned, eyes crammed shut. 'Good, have this,' adding in a "Wimp!" for good measure. He took an Ultra Shroom out of Hammerspace and popped it in Mario's mouth. 'Thank Grambi for Kamek,' he muttered.

Mario got to his feet. '...that really hurt,' he said simply.

'Yeah, and don't you forget it!' the Koopa King snorted. 'You'd be dead meat if it weren't for me!'

'Look out!' Peach cried. Luigi crashed into the ground in front of them all. The real Doopliss flew in and assaulted them all with black fire, headbutting Luigi. The younger brother managed to land on his feet and throw his hammer, getting the Duplighost in the stomach. Mario and Luigi both jumped up into the air, interlocking one hand each and using their Firebrand and Thunderhand together. Spinning around fast they became a huge ball of fire and electricity, and came down on their foe. The resulting explosion created a small crater, making dust and dirt fly everywhere.

The Mario Bros. hopped out of it. 'Gotta love those Bros. Attacks, eh bro?' Mario said with a grin.

'Hoo...yeah. Mamma mia, I am _beat!_'

'You...you aren't beat yet...!' Doopliss crawled out of the hole. 'Freaking_ plumbers_ and they're kicking my—'

'WHEN DO YOU GIVE UP?' They all screamed at him.

'NEVER!' Doopliss screamed back, surrounding himself again with dark flames. 'I'll give up when the Underwhere starts giving swimming lessons in the Twygz!'

'I'll let Jaydes know that she should personally if it'll make you quit,' Mario huffed, swinging his hammer tiredly.

Meanwhile, the former minions of Count Bleck (plus Timpani) were having their own battle.

'My _friends_...' Dimentio said, false friendliness oozing from his voice. 'Why not join me? I have room in my world for everyone, after all. I have such _fond _memories of our time together. Ah ha ha.'

'Oh, away an' bile yer head!' O'Chunks snorted.

_Boom!_ An explosion sent the warrior flying into the air. 'Oh, forgive me,' the magician leered. 'I couldn't understand you through your idiocy, Chunky.' Flinging out his arms to his sides, he laughed loudly. 'Oh how good it feels to finally have you all at my mercy!'

'We aren't finished quite yet, Dimentio,' Blumiere stated firmly. He pointed at the jester with his jewelled sceptre. 'Your dimensional tomfoolery ends today!'

'Such a thing is impossible, my brother.' Dimentio did a back flip in midair and waved his hands, magical energy floating off from them. 'My magical abilities far outweigh yours. Such meaningless assertions are nothing but empty words!'

The two Tribe of Darkness members attacked with their own style of energy blasts, taking to the skies. Blumiere swung his sceptre at the jester's head, who put out his hands and blocked it with an invisible barrier. 'Traitor...' the prince growled.

'I could say the same about YOU!' Flinging his hand out, the barrier shattered, throwing Blumiere off balance. Dimentio pressed his two fingers on Blumiere's forehead, sending a paralyzing wave through his entire body. Wrenching the sceptre from his grasp, the jester brought the jewelled tip across his half-brother's face. Blumiere whirled through the air to the ground, a gash of black blood slashing across his cheek.

'Blumiere!' Timpani cried as he hit the ground.

'Take care of the Count, Timpani, I'll take Dimentio!' Mimi told her.

'Be careful!' the girl warned as she took to the skies.

'Aha!' the magician beamed; he swung the sceptre and narrowly missed Mimi, who attempted to impale him with one of her Rubees, but failed as Dimentio warped behind her, bringing Blumiere's weapon down on the back of her head. 'Such impudence, it makes me laugh.'

'Doesn't everything?' Mimi yelled, flipping dimensions and winding up right in front of Dimentio. She slapped him in the face, regretting it as her hand smacked into his mask. She swung again and he grabbed her arm.

'Why yes, yes it does. Ah ha ha. Except, of course...' His voice dropped to little more than a whisper, his masked eyes narrowing dangerously. 'Your absence, my dear.'

'A...absence?' Mimi's heart missed a beat. 'What're you talking about?'

'Your...absence...' he drew closer to her, whispering in her ear. 'In my _heart..._it haunts me...taunts me...every time you're mentioned or seen I am reminded of exactly what I used to feel...and it's _awful_.'

Mimi stared at Dimentio with fear. 'How can you just block off love? How can you be like this when you've got so much conflict in your heart?'

'Ah ha ha...' the jester laughed. 'The answer to that, my dear...is _acting_.' He spun her around and hurled her towards the ground.

Mimi shrieked for the few seconds it took for her to stop falling, going quiet as she came to an abrupt and sickening halt. Her eyes, which she had crammed shut, opened; she was in Blumiere's arms. 'Oogh...' she burbled. 'I think I'm gonna be sick...'

'Are you hurt?' the man asked, concerned.

'N-no...I'll live.' Her head was spinning. Blumiere set her down and raced up to the sky. Mimi kneeled on the ground, clutching her stomach.

'Ahahahaha!' Dimentio cackled. 'You are like a tiny Chihuahua going to battle against a Great Dane!'

'Conceited little fool...' Blumiere grunted, gritting his teeth. He flipped dimensions and punched his traitorous minion in the gut.

Dimentio sucked in his breath and doubled over; he giggled, grinning insanely. 'I always did have...a weak body...' He fell like a stone towards the ground. A _ping _sounded and he reappeared behind Blumiere, shoving a block of dimensional magic into the back of his head. A loud _boink!_ sounded as it burst, flinging the man away. 'But such a strong knowledge of magic!' the magician finished. He turned around and dropped to the ground feet-first, smiling as he approached Mimi and Timpani. 'Such wonderful friends, aren't we? Ah ha ha.'

Mimi got up to her feet. 'You _wish_.'

'I could say the same for you, my little lovebird.'

The grin on Dimentio's face was too much for Mimi. 'YOU DAMN FREAK!' she screamed, her anger and embarrassment boiling over. She got up and ran at full tilt at him, conjuring up Rubees as she ran. She didn't last long; the jester swung Blumiere's sceptre and it connected with the side of her head, black magic making her fly to the side.

'Such an impudent girl.' He turned to her and concentrated the Chaos Heart's energy on the point at the end of the sceptre's tip; it glowed dangerously. 'What do I do when I long for you?' he asked to her. 'I simply remove the problem. Goodbye.'

His concentration broke as somebody punched him in the side of his face. His small body fell off balance and he hit the earth below him. 'Leave her alone you monster!' Timpani yelled. She kicked Dimentio in the side.

Mimi's heart missed a few beats as she saw this unfolding. 'Timpani, don't do it!'

'ENOUGH!' Dimentio screamed in rage. He swung his arm and threw the girl up into the air; grabbing the sceptre, he got up as Timpani came down. 'Insolent human! YOU'RE the reason I lost the Prognosticus in the first place!'

Timpani got up. 'And we'll take it away again!' she shouted defiantly.

'GRAH GOOGLY!' O'Chunks bellowed, coming down in a protective stance in front of his former master's wife. 'Tha's right, what she said! An' ta get ta her you'll hafta go through ol' O'Chunks!'

'_Are they insane?_' Blumiere had gone to Mimi's side. 'They'll be killed!'

'Get him now!' Mimi yelled.

Dimentio stuck up a hand and snapped his fingers, causing an explosion at both of their feet. They fell backwards and hit the ground on their backs. 'O'Chunks you blithering nitwit! I am tired of your foolish attempts at battle!' Swinging Blumiere's sceptre in a wide arc, he created a mass of blackness. 'Drown in the darkness, alone!' The mass overtook him and swept him off the ground; he yelled out in muffled horror for a moment before the mass shrank and O'Chunks was gone. 'Brute strength only gets you so far, my meat headed friend.' He set his eyes on the woman before him, her face pale. 'And as for _you_, you disgusting, pathetic girl...' He snapped his fingers, freezing her in place, and brought the sceptre back. 'Join Nastasia in the aftergame!'

'Timpani!' Mimi screamed.

Blumiere practically flew to his feet, his eyes wild with horror. 'NOOOOOOOO!'

There was a split second of ice cold fear for every one of the heroes; all eyes turned in terror to Dimentio and Timpani. They could all hear their hearts pounding in their chests.

And then Dimentio drove the sceptre through the woman's heart.

Timpani lurched only slightly, her eyes widened in pain. A small gasp escaped her mouth as blood began to pour out of the wound. The paralyzing spell was released and she fell over the jester's shoulder. He slid the sceptre out of her body and let her fall to the ground. He regarded her plainly for a moment, then whirled around, slashing the air above her body as he did so. A huge gash carved the woman in half, a cascade of blood exploding out into the air. 'NOW!' Dimentio yelled at Blumiere. 'Feel the true pain of love!' He threw the sceptre at the man's feet and disappeared laughing, bringing Midbus and Doopliss with him.

The whole place was silent. The only noise was the whistling of the wind. The sun was beginning to disappear, casting a blue and red haze over the land. Blumiere's eyes were fixed on the bloodied sceptre lying on the ground in front of him. In a daze, he knelt down and picked it up, holding it with trembling hands. He slowly moved his gaze to the mass of flesh and blood lying on the ground, limbs splayed outwards. Blumiere walked forward and his arms dropped to his sides as he looked at his wife's face, frozen with terror.

Tears had begun to form in his eyes; Mimi could only watch as she the man she regarded as one of her greatest companions in life stood there emotionally scarred. O'Chunks had been taken from her in the blink of an eye, and now this. 'C...Count?' she managed to squeak out.

Blumiere hung his head and the sceptre fell from his hand. Dropping down to his knees he dug his fingers into the dirt; strangled sobs escaped his lips. 'T...T...Ti...' He shuddered; Mimi's heart broke. Then he brought his head back and screamed a scream that shook every single one of them. It was the sound of a loss, a loss that each and every one of them had either felt before or feared they would have to feel. Mario, Luigi, Peach, Bowser, Mimi, and Fawful...each and every one of them felt sadness well up inside of their hearts, and there wasn't a single one that didn't shed a tear. 'TIMPANI!' he howled in emotional agony. 'TIMPANI! COME BACK TO ME! COME BACK! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!' His whole heart was breaking to pieces; the one thing in the world that mattered most to him, more than his own life and the entirety of existence, had been brutally mutilated. His wife. His other half. His love. She was gone forever, and he had borne witness to it. He screamed again, clawing at his own face, digging scratches into his skin; thick, black blood oozing out.

Mimi cried, her own heart throbbing with grief for her former Count. 'Why...to go this far...why is he...?' She buried her head in her hands, sobbing. Why was Dimentio doing all this, causing all this pain? More importantly, why, even after all this, did she still...?

Fawful came and stood beside her. '...Mimi.' His voice cracked with sadness, eyes frozen on the screaming man. She looked at the Bean and knew what he was going to do. He was going to give some excuse, tell her that he didn't mean to do what he did and that she shouldn't be upset with him. He was going to put the blame on the woman, he was going to try and make things seem less than they were.

Instead, he said: 'I am sorry.'

Mimi shook and looked at Fawful's tearful eyes. Forgetting everything he had done, she grabbed him and hugged him tightly, coveting a source of warmth in this cold and dark world.


	30. Chapter 30: An End to Excess

Chapter 30: An End to Excess

?

In the blink of an eye, he had been taken away. He didn't even know how it happened, it just did. He had been swept away from his family and friends, leaving behind not a single trace. He was a captive.

A prisoner of war.

The room around him was small, or at least it seemed so; it was so dark he couldn't be sure. Black walls were all around him, not a single torch around to light up the room even a little bit. The only illumination was the dark light that came from the swirling black mass called the Void; if it was any blacker it wouldn't make a difference. It was almost as if he was blind anyway, but at least his eyes could pick up _something_.

He groaned, leaning his head against the wall; everything was as hopeless as they had thought. His friends...they hadn't said it, but he could always tell that as they attempted to brighten themselves up they could never escape the foreboding feeling that was utter destruction. Now...now he didn't know what was going to happen. Was he to be executed? Maybe he'd simply be left to starve to death or die of thirst.

_'Interesting,'_ came a voice from nowhere. _'You haven't done a single thing since I kidnapped you. I'd hoped you would be more...active.'_ A _ping_ sound rang out and a person appeared, floating in the air and wearing purple and yellow jester's clothes. A black and white mask covered his face. This was only visible for the moment he appeared and his dimension warp affected the light, but it was enough. 'Why don't you scream in fear or beg for mercy like all the other hapless fools I've taken over the millennia?' The man just shrugged. 'Ah ha ha...perhaps that is for the best. You really are the first to keep quiet.' The jester did a flip in the air. 'Perhaps you are wondering why I've brought you hear. You see...I believe you would be quite an asset to me. Those pathetic heroes, forever opposing me even after the three casualties they have suffered...they are all thorns in my side. Oh yes, I most certainly do have other assets. Midbus has brute strength to manage the weak. Esmine can play excellent mind games. Doopliss can shape shift. Valex and the rest of my creations have such sheer diversity and feral instincts. Combine all those with my knowledge of the dimensions and magic, and you would think that we would be unstoppable! But no...no, that is not so.' The jester crossed his legs, resting his elbows on his knees and his chin on his hands. 'Instead we are met with mostly failure...with the exception of the two victories today. Why is this so? Clearly we are missing an aspect. That, my poor, confused captive, is where _you_ come in. _You_ have an asset to you that the others don't. You have something that goes far beyond brute strength, shape shifting, mind games, or even magic. What do you think it is?'

The man glared at the jester, though whether or not it could be seen was unknown.

'I see you won't respond. Perhaps you simply don't know.' He rotated around until he was in the same position, only upside down. 'Ah well, you'll have plenty of time to figure it out for yourself. I hope you enjoy your stay here.' Even in the darkness the man could see the jester wave to him mockingly. 'Ciao~!' Another _ping_ and he was gone.

The man slumped, sighing. Oh, to be with friends again. Oh, to be with _family_. He longed for that most of all. His gaze turned to the swirling black hole beyond the window in the room and began to pray to whoever was listening that he would be able to be reunited with them soon.

Fawful

Fawful stared at the couch in his room, feeling the pit of despair in his stomach sink deeper and deeper. The scene he had only recently witness kept playing over and over in his head.

_'Drown in the darkness, alone!'_ And O'Chunks was taken by darkness.

_'Join Nastasia in the aftergame!'_ And Timpani was sliced to pieces.

Fawful felt, once again, tears developing in his eyes and he wiped them away. It was Timpani's death that had affected him the most, if only because of Blumiere's heart wrenching reaction. Now that he really had the time to reflect on it though, there was an absence in the room without O'Chunks that he simply hadn't noticed when he was alone before the man's death.

_'Destroyin' everything's not right, not even when you got reasons like the Count did. 'Course, the Count didn't actually have a good reason after all...'_

Fawful sat down on the couch and hid his face in his hands. The Void loomed eerily in the sky; it was now much larger, covering over half of his view of the skyline. It would grow in size and blot out the sun. Then it would destroy everything in the world, leaving a blank white husk behind, a shadow of what the world once was. Every single world in existence would suffer this fate. They would suffer it, that is, unless they, the new Heroes of the Light Pronosticus, could stop Dimentio.

_The Heroes, joined by the Child of Beans, shall bring to life the Purity Heart and the Void shall close. However, before the end of the great battle, the Heroes will know one fact above all: Darkness breeds despair._

_"Darkness breeds despair..."_

_Ba-bump. Ba-bump. Ba-bump._

Fawful winced and groaned as the Chaos Heart sent a throbbing pain across his body again. His fingers twitched and burned, his chest aching. He took off one of his gloves and looked at his hand; the green skin had been tainted with inky black veins that twisted around right to the ends of his fingers and back. His feet, he knew, would be the same. It wouldn't be long before the veins would begin to travel up his neck and cover his head. What would happen to him then?

_'Isn't it lovely?'_

Fawful grimaced. _It lacks loveliness, fink-rat._

_'The Void's eternal dark beauty, reigning forever in the skies of existence.'_ The Chaos Heart's words floated through the Bean's mind. _'Soon...the Mushroom World will fall, just like the rest of the worlds before it.'_

_Not if Fawful has the stopping of that jester..._

_'And do you really think that is possible? Will a Purity Heart destroy him? It will quell my powers, yes, but it will only destroy me if the one controlling me is dead.'_

Fawful allowed an evil grin to spread across his face. _Then Dimentio will have death._

_'Think, Fawful. What will happen when Dimentio dies? When my other half is left without a body to inhabit, where will it go? You know the answer: to the holder of the second half. You.'_

A chill went down the scientist's body. _The Heart of Purity will—_

_'Do nothing,'_ it cut in._ 'As I said, the holder must die for me to be rendered weak enough to be destroyed. That means that if Dimentio is killed and I inhabit you...then you must die as well. If you die and Dimentio takes my second half, then all but he will perish to the Void. It is a no-win situation for you and your little friends. All I have to do is wait. Besides...'_ A sound filled Fawful's head much like chuckling. _'What's to say you have to die? You could always...take up Dimentio's mantle.'_

Fawful pounded his fist on the couch arm. _No! Fawful will never—_

_'Is that not what you have been working for for your entire life? World domination? All of your dreams could be realized after all. You could build a shrine to Cackletta in her honour, knowing that you have finally fulfilled her expectations.'_ Fawful fell silent. _'You wanted to ask her what villainy was, correct? Why you and she were evil? I have the answer. Do you want to hear it?'_

'No...' Fawful muttered half-heartedly.

_'The answer, Fawful...is your desires. Only you know what you wish for. Only you know what your goals are. Cackletta's goal was to overthrow the world and rule over it for herself. Power...everyone desires it. You do too. I can feel it...you long for power, respect. You long for the world. It's written all over your _heart_...right down to the deepest, darkest pits.'_

The Beanish boy stared at his own fingers, the black veins pulsing eerily. _Power...the one true wish of Fawful..._ he thought.

He saw it: all the worlds at their knees, their inhabitants bowing before him, proclaiming his name. His enemies were bruised, beaten and bloodied; Dimentio, Bowser, the Mario brothers...Princess Peach and the Bean Queen were trophy prisoners, an eternal reminder of his victory and their failure to hold their kingdoms. Lady Lima and Prince Peasley were his own servants, obeying his every command. Statues of he and Cackletta lined the streets, the Fawful Show and its merchandise was back in business...and at the whole visions pinnacle, he, the great and powerful Dark Fawful, reigned, none daring to oppose him.

Clenched his fists, quickly making the grin that had developed on his face vanish; the Chaos Heart was just feeding him lies. There was no way it could grant him that.

_'I could...and can...grant Dimentio that. It has already begun. What is to say that I cannot grant you your wish for power?'_

There was a quiet knocking on the door. 'Enter into the room of Fawful's,' he called absentmindedly.

_'All you've ever wished for...'_ the Chaos Heart droned, its voice fading away. _'In the palm of your hands...that is what villainy is.'_ It was gone.

The door opened and Mimi walked into the room. Fawful didn't move his gaze to her, just kept his head resting on his hands. The girl stood there and stared at him sternly for a moment before sighing and sitting down on the other end of the couch.

There was a silence between the two that Fawful hadn't felt before; Fawful himself felt dirty and wrong, and he could feel that Mimi didn't trust him anymore. The two of them just sat there, staring at their knees and listening to the regular rumble of the train. disappearing on the horizon, just a tiny sliver sinking into the distance.

It was Mimi who broke the silence. 'I still don't forgive you, you know.' Her voice sounded hurt and sad.

It took Fawful a couple of seconds to try and think up an appropriate response; in the end he just shrugged. 'Fawful has innocence,' he sighed. 'But you will not have the believing of him, will you?'

Mimi turned her head to look at him; his eyes longed for something more than this, more than going on a wild goose chase to save the universe. 'Why'd you do it Fawful? I thought I actually meant something to you.'

The Bean tilted his head to look at her; their eyes held the same sadness. 'You _do_,' he said. 'You are the greatest friend of Fawful that he has ever had the having of.' He looked away and frowned, perturbed. 'That girl...she had the strangeness...and Fawful is not knowing what that strangeness is being.' Mimi gave him a look that clearly expressed her disbelief, then looked away. 'How is Blumiere?' the boy asked her.

'He...' Mimi wiped her eye on her arm, sniffing. 'He spoke to me. I'm the only one he's said a word to, probably because him and I are the only ones left of our old...group.'

'What did he have the saying of?' Fawful asked.

'He...he said...' Mimi took a shuddering breath and her voice perfectly imitated Blumiere's. '"I never thought it would come to this...my dear, sweet Timpani..."'

Fawful felt like a cold stake was driven into his heart. 'I have sadness...'

'He also said one more thing. A question.' She swallowed some saliva and spoke in Blumiere's voice again. '"Mimi...have you ever questioned whether or not life is truly worth living?"' Fawful looked at her expectantly. 'I said no. Then he said: "Timpani was my heart and soul. Nothing in existence mattered to me more than her. That was why...when Timpani was taken away from me, I felt nothing else deserved to live more than her. If she had to face death...then _everything_ had to face death."' She paused, wiping away a tear. '"That...wasn't right. The rest of the worlds should not suffer my sorrow. Only I..."' Her voice trailed off. 'He stopped talking, right there. I asked for him to say something more, but...he wouldn't say anything. So I left.'

'Will he have the...up of cheer?'

Mimi shook her head sadly. 'I don't know Fawful. The last time this happened he tried to destroy everything and I...I don't want to see that happen again! I...' She balled her fists up. 'I can't...I can't have anymore sins on my shoulders. No more...'

_Power...the one true wish of Fawful..._ Fawful balled his own fists up; if he ever wanted to obtain the power he so desperately sought, then...he would have to forsake Mimi. He...

He would think about that later.

Fawful brought his hands up and smacked his fist into his palm, black flames flaring up. 'No more sins for Mimi,' he said. His eyes glowed red as he said, 'Dimentio will have the dying at the hands of Fawful. Then the sins will be on Fawful. Just as the sins have always been on Fawful.'

_'And then...power. Power...all for you, Fawful.'_

'Be...careful, Fawful,' Mimi warned. 'Don't go too far. Things like the Chaos Heart feed on that. Remember what happened to Blumiere.'

_'BLEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEH! BLECK!' _Fawful shuddered; he didn't know what Count Bleck had been like, but his pan dimensional grip had spread everywhere; no one _hadn't_ heard of the infamous Destroyer of Worlds. The Chaos Heart had even shared with him some visions of what happened to the destroyed worlds; not pretty. 'Fawful will try,' he said.

'Hold onto a light...'

'...what?' Mimi had muttered the words under her breath and the Bean had barely heard.

'Hold onto a light, as tightly as you can, and darkness leaves with fright, as it can't understand. Keep a happy thought in your mind always, Fawful. One bright, shining light that you'll never let go of. The dark forces won't hurt you then, because they don't know what light is. Like Dimentio, blocking himself off from love. He doesn't get it at all.' Her words turned solemn at the last sentence.

'Hold onto...a light?' Fawful tried to think of something that made him happy. Cackletta had made him happy, but...she was a villain, as was he. She only inspired the dark memories that he relished from the past. Mimi made him happy too, but...'

_'GO BACK TO THE UNDERWHERE! IT'S WHERE YOU BELONG!'_

He winced. 'Light has difficulty to find...' he murmured. 'When all around you is dark...'

_'Light and dark...what is to say they are different?' _the Chaos Heart asked._ 'Light is the absence of dark, just as dark is the absence of light. One cannot truly exist without the other. Allow my dark to blend with your light...and you will live in perfect balance.'_

_And yet your darkness is having the destroying of Fawful, yes? The inky blackness, covering the one who is me...why? What is it that you are doing to me?_

_'Establishing...a presence. Really, Fawful, the only way to get rid of _that_ dark...is to obtain _more_ dark. The dark of my second half. And to do that..._

_Dimentio will have death...what side are you being on, anyway?_

_'Both, and no one's.'_

_What? What is that meaning?_ No response. _Answer! _'ANSWER!'

'F-FAWFUL!' Mimi screamed. 'Don't scare me like that!'

'Uh...apologies.'

The lights around the train flicked on as the last of the sun disappeared. _'Attention passengers!'_ the engineer's voice rang out. _'It will be time for bed in precisely one hour. Our conductor will be coming around with pyjamas and blankets for all passengers. Have a happy last hour of the day!'_

'The night will have quiet...' Fawful muttered, 'without O'Chunks to have snoring.'

Mimi squirmed. 'We lost a great person in him, you know. I'll...I'll miss him a lot. He was like family, just like Nastasia, the Count, and...even like Dimentio.'

Fawful nodded. 'I have agreement.'

Mimi left soon after; the hour passed very quickly for Fawful, who sat alone on the couch reflecting his recent loss. As much as he and the Scottish man hadn't gotten along, he had to admit that he was going to feel a void in his heart at his loss.

After the hour passed, the entire train save the engineer's car went dark.

Dimentio

'So,' the villainous jester said in a hushed undertone. 'It is complete?'

'As complete as it's gotta be ta work, ayup,' Grubba replied.

The dim light of the storage car shone on the object in the centre of the car: a dark, glass sphere attached to a mechanical contraption. Inside the sphere was another, smaller sphere which housed what seemed to be a miniature Void. Outside the small sphere was a dark, blackish mist. The two glass spheres glowed and shone as the respective dark mist and Void touched them, though otherwise maintained stability.

'The fruits of your labour shall be reaped soon, Grubba. Very soon indeed.' Dimentio's grin turned malicious. 'And you are certain it won't fail?'

'Absolutely! The thing's gonna work like a charm, I tell ya.'

'Have you _tested_ it yet?'

'Eh...no, no I haven't. But it hasn't blown up on me, which means it's as good as it's gonna get.'

'Very well. Move forward with the plan tomorrow morning, before breakfast is announced. With enough luck, our opposition will be crushed in one fell swoop!'

Fawful

Morning came quickly, and Fawful awoke as soon as the first rays of the sun started trickling over in the distance. The silence at night due to the lack of O'Chunks made it, in fact, _more_ difficult for him to sleep; it reminded him of the horrible deaths he had seen the day before. He was tired and restless; he quickly changed into his freshly cleaned clothes and put his Headgear on his head, taking some comfort in its familiar weight.

'You are being Fawful's companion that will never have the leaving of him!' he said with a grin. The Headgear mimicked his grin, though it couldn't feel as Fawful did; it couldn't feel anything. The boy sighed. 'I have fury...so much is happening to me, and I am not knowing how to be dealing with it.' He rubbed his temples. 'Aside from blasting, that has the working the time of most.'

There was a brisk knocking on his door. ''Ey!' came a Southern-accented voice from beyond his door. 'It's me, Crubba!'

_He is up this time of earliness?_ Fawful thought. 'Have the coming in, then.'

'No time, I got somethin' important ta tell ya 'bout those creeps we saw yesterday! They're plannin' somethin' awful! C'mon!'

'Wh...what? Wait!' Crubba was gone. Fawful grabbed all his belongings and ran out the door.

'Whoa!' Luigi halted abruptly as he and the Bean almost collided in the hallway.

'Fink-rat!' Fawful snarled. 'What are you doing?'

'Following Crubba!' Bowser answered for him. All of Fawful's allies, save for Blumiere, were in the hall. 'He said he had something to tell us about Midbus and that freak-sheet!'

'Well...' They all looked down the hall. 'He is not having close-by-ness.'

'Let's go find him then,' Mario said.

They took off down the hallway, moving down the cars one-by-one, until they reached the final car at the end of the train. 'This is the storage car,' Peach noted quietly.

'Hey, what the heck?' Mimi looked down at a body on the floor; the conductor was lying on the ground, unmoving, eyes closed. 'Isn't he supposed to be _guarding_ this car?'

Mario walked up and put an ear to the conductor's chest. 'He's...asleep,' he revealed.

Mimi kicked him. 'Get up,' she said.

'Perhaps it will not have useing...' Fawful muttered.

'Guys...' the red-clad plumber warned. 'I don't like the looks of this. We need to go after Crubba and see what he knows. And for the love of Grambi...be _careful_.' He moved the slumbering conductor off to the side and opened the door to the storage car. No one was there, but the door to the outside of the train was hanging open.

'Is he...on top of the train?' Luigi asked.

'Looks like it,' his brother answered. 'Let's-a go.'

They all clambered up to the wall and hopped up to the door. As Fawful passed the many boxes, a thought occurred to him. He shifted a ways and moved some boxes to find Crubba's "Energy Diffusion Reactor" sitting innocently all alone.

'Fawful?' It was Mario. 'Come on, we need to hurry.' He motioned towards the door.

The Bean scientist took one last look at the device and decided it wasn't worth it. He jogged up to the door and used his Headgear's rockets to propel him up and out of it. Mario followed suit. They climbed a ladder onto the top of the train where they could see Crubba further down.

'C'mon fellas, we gotta make this lil chat quick!' he warned. 'And I tell ya...it's deadly important!'

'Don't fall,' Mario warned.

'Psh,' Fawful snorted. 'I have more footing than _that_.'

The whole group moved up along the cars until they were face-to-face with the smartly-dressed Clubba, who tipped his large white hat in greeting. 'Heya heyo, folks and folkettes! Ain't it just a nice day up here? The wind gustin' through yer hair, the mornin' sun shinin' in yer eyes...' His bifocal glasses reflected the sunlight to an almost distracting degree. 'Almost makes ya want some peace n' quiet in the world. Guess we can't have that after all.'

Mario moved up to the front of the group and looked Crubba up and down. 'You said you had information for us about Doopliss and Midbus? Are they planning something?'

'Ah, yes, yes, that, right!' Crubba smiled. 'Well, this here's important to remain confidential, ya here? No tellin' other people. Gotta keep it secret.'

'Our lips are sealed,' the plumber replied.

'Good, good.' Crubba licked his large lips. 'Aye, they're plannin' something big. But first...ya know that nice ol' pal-o Grubba?'

Everyone in the group started and eyed the Clubba suspiciously. 'How do you know about him?' Mario demanded.

'Well it'd be kinda concernin' if I _didn't_ know him, seein' as he's me.'

There was a moment of silence before Mario said, '...what?'

'HYUK HYUK! Ain't you fellas a bunch a hopeless saps!' He took off his hat and threw it up in the air; it disappeared into a puff of purple smoke and Doopliss landed next to him.

'_Surprise_, slicks!' he laughed.

Grubba ran his hands through his orange hair. 'Aaah~' he sighed, tossing the glasses off the side of the train. 'You all're so GREAT fer some humour, y'know? Didn't know it was me the whole time!' He laughed again.

'You little...' Bowser growled.

'Dimentio wasn't kiddin' when he said you folks were easily fooled! I thought 'e was jokin' when he told me about that Mr. L fella. An EYEMASK n' you all didn't know it was Greenie over there? Now that there's just hilarious! An' lil Fawful over there, ain't illusions just great? If you'd just walked into the room and given me a lil ol' poke you'd a' found out that I wasn't me after all.'

Fawful's face reddened. 'Fink-rat...'

Grubba's face suddenly took on a serious look. 'But the laughin's over, chumps. It's the end a' the line fer you!'

'Are you seriously saying you want to fight all of us...by yourselves?' It was Mario's turn to laugh. 'I could beat you both by myself, let alone with five other people!'

'Ah, well that must be disappointin' fer you then, _Great Gonzales_, because I don't intend ta do any fightin' today, or fer the rest a' my days.' He yawned and stretched, checking a watch he had on his wrist. 'Ya know, I've been workin' on somethin' pretty interestin' fer the past lil while now. Fawful'll know all about that, dunno if 'e told the rest a' ya. Anyway, it's a little somethin' I like to call the "Negative Subatomic Explosive Device."

'E..._explosive?_' Luigi sputtered.

'Yeah!' Grubba hooted. 'You can call it the "Dark Energy Bomb" if ya like. Either name's fine really. What it does is it takes two different types of dark energy and puts them together, then they blow up. Plain n' simple, just a heck of a bugger to perfect.'

'Two different types...?' Mimi questioned.

Grubba checked his watch again. 'Ah...well ya see, I took some energy that the lil Beanie over there had left behind after he blew up and the thing he built onto Peach's Castle fell down and mixed it together with some of my own energy. Nearly blew the hair right off my head!'

'You...you dare...?' Fawful growled.

'What I discovered,' the Clubba continued, 'was that the energy from the Chaos Heart and the energy from the Dark Star are completely different. The Chaos Heart, and the Void, fer that matter, always goes through this endless cycle: it creates its own energy and cells and destroys other ones, always destroying itself yet always addin' to itself too. Create destroy create destroy...heh heh heh. That's why it _always_ has power ta give.' He checked his watch again. 'Now, the Dark Star, that's different. It's made up of "raw evil." It embodies the darkness in all a' us. It's purely destructive, and leeches the life outta anything it wants to. Just bein' around it's bound ta make ya pretty outta sorts. I suspect that if we'd been left in that freaky storm for long we'd a' started to disappear. Thanks fer savin' my behind, by the way,' he added, addressing the Mario Bros. and Bowser, who just glared at him. 'Anywho, when I got down deep enough I figured I could make a weapon outta this, so I did. I just had to make sure the thing could be stable enough for long enough, then time it right.' He checked his watch again.

'Why are you checking your watch so much?' Mimi demanded.

'Ah, that's because the bomb's already set ta go off pretty soon. Heh heh.'

Everyone tensed. 'You're joking!' Bowser roared.

'Nope! The thing's nestled nice n' cosy in that Energy Diffusion Reactor that I made. Which, incidentally, doesn't actually work. S'just a shell so I could hide it. Your loss again, Beanie Boy!' He clapped his hands and checked his watch again. 'So, I reckon you all got about two minutes or so before this train goes kerblooey. Better get a move on! Oh wait...' he struck a fake "thinking pose." 'What about all them innocent passengers down there? Ain't they just wakin' up...with no clue of their danger?' He grinned evilly. 'Time ta make a choice, Gonzales. I'm sure you've got enough time...a minute and a half now!' He wiggled his fingers in farewell and disappeared, bringing Doopliss with him.

Due to the fact that they only had a minute and a half's worth of time, the gravity of the situation set in very quickly for all of them. 'Mario!' Peach said. 'We need to save the passengers!'

Mario was frozen to the spot, his eyes wide, eyes darting from all his companions to the roof of the train where, underneath, all the passengers were.

'Mario...' Mimi said. 'There are passengers! Blumiere...he's still inside! We need to move quickly, so what's the plan?'

Mario was beginning to sweat, his skin pale. 'I...I don't know how...' he croaked.

'Bro!' Luigi cried. 'We're running out of time!'

The hero shook, his fists closed tightly. When he spoke, his voice was quivering. 'Everybody...jump off the train.'

A split second of silent passed. '...what?' the princess breathed.

'GET OFF THE TRAIN NOW!' Mario roared suddenly.

'But...but Bro, the passengers!'

'THERE'S NO TIME!' he screamed desperately. 'JUMP OFF THIS TRAIN OR I'LL _THROW YOU OFF!_'

Taking one last glance at the man, everyone jumped off. Bowser had shell protection, Peach could just float down, and Luigi was, like Mario, incredibly resilient to damage regardless, hitting the speeding ground rolling yet not actually taking too much damage; whatever he _did_ hurt he could just heal with any item he had in his inventory. Mario leaped off the train next and Fawful took to the skies with his Headgear. He looked back at Mimi and saw her hurriedly flip out of the dimension, knowing exactly which person she was going to bring back with her.

Mimi

'BLUMIERE!' She screamed out his name before she had even finished flipping into his room. The dark prince was all dressed up in clean clothes, his top hat low over his eyes as he stared out the window.

'Mimi...' he said, his voice pained. 'I had hoped you wouldn't come for me.'

'Blumiere, there's a bomb on the train!' she cried. 'You need to come with me, quick!'

'A bomb on the train...I know there is.'

Mimi's heart pounded in her chest. 'Then...then why didn't you get off? Blumiere you need to come with me!'

'I cannot. I will not.' The man's voice quivered with sadness.

'What...but Blumiere...?'

The former Count of Castle Bleck turned around and looked at her, his bright yellow eyes sparkling with tears. 'I have said so before Mimi. A life without Timpani...is utterly meaningless.'

Mimi put a hand over her chest and stepped back as Blumiere's words were fully understood. 'No...you can't mean that!'

'I do. The time is ticking...only forty seconds left until it detonates.'

'But...the other passengers...'

'My power is weak. I could only save a single person...and I knew it would be you.'

'Blumiere...I can flip us both out!' She ran up to him and grabbed his sleeve, desperately conjuring up a 2D box around the both of them.

The prince reached a hand up and grabbed the top of the box; with a powerful yank he pulled it apart, the shards disappearing before they hit the ground. 'Thirty seconds...' he muttered, grabbing Mimi by her collar.

'B-Blumiere...!' the green girl croaked in terror, panic making her flail aimlessly.

'I couldn't save Timpani...' he said, shaking. 'But I can still save you, and at last be reunited with her until the Void ends our existences for the rest of time...' Mimi felt a powerful magic seep into her body and she knew he was making her invincible just as he had before when she had been tasked with guarding the third Pure Heart.

'N-no!' she screamed hoarsely. 'Blumiere...you can't do this! Blumiere!'

'Farewell Mimi...and good luck.' Without another word he spun around and threw her at the window.

'COOOOUUUNT!' she wailed, covering her face as she flew towards the glass. She hit it hard, but no pain was felt; she smashed through it like a brick, landing on the speeding ground and bouncing like a rag doll, limbs flailing from the impact. He slammed her eyes shut and winced at every crash, but her bones remained unbroken and the impacts felt like she was bouncing on a trampoline.

She stopped and laid there for a few moments, her heart pounding in her chest and her lungs working like crazy. She jumped back up to see the Excess Express continuing on its course for Nautoville...everyone save the heroes aware of the peril they were in.

'No...no!' she screamed, already drawing up a box. A firm hand grabbed her arm and the shock caused the box to disappear; Mario was holding her in place. 'Mario!' she yelled frantically. 'Blumiere's still inside! I've got to get him out!' The plumber said nothing; his eyes were fixed on the train moving quickly away from them. 'Mario, let go!' she demanded. 'Mario...I need to save him!' She tugged against his grip, but he held firm. 'Mario...MARIO! LET GO NOW!' Her voice was dissolving into terrible cries, a hopeless sorrow taking over her heart. 'I NEED TO SAVE HIM! PLEASE!' He said nothing, but it was clear he was in pain; all he could think about were all the people in the train who were going to die.

In the train, all was calm. The passengers were just waking up to the day. Chef Shimi was finished setting up the dining car and the kitchen, wearing a broad smile on his face as he thought of all the wonderful food that was going to be served. The shopkeeper in that very same car was humming a tune as he flipped the sign on the door to "OPEN." The Toad waitress with the pink, heart shaped spots on her cap and purple pigtails was setting up the tables, singing a song. She held a picture of her boyfriend in her hand, blushing and smiling.

'I can't wait to see you~' she gushed. 'Only another week~'

Goldbob, Sylvia, and Bub awoke in their cabin, blinking the sleep from their eyes. 'Nautoville's gonna be great!' Bub shouted excitedly. 'One more day one more day one more day!'

'Mm, yes,' Goldbob agreed. 'It will be quite the excursion indeed.'

Sylvia looked at her phone and then switched it off. 'Agreed,' she agreed.

The intercom beeped to life and the cheerful voice of the engineer sounded over the speakers. _'Good morning passengers!'_ he said happily. _'Today is our final day aboard the Excess Express before we depart at Nautoville. We hope you will again enjoy our wide selection of food today in our dining car. To celebrate this last day our chef has prepared a special mystery dish for you all to try. Have fun, and have a—'_

And then the train exploded.

They felt it before it actually happened; a heavy invisible pulse of dark energy that made the hairs on the backs of their necks stand up and their hearts drop in their chests. For that moment, everyone felt horribly sad, without a speck of happiness or calm in them at all.

Then it happened. The storage car blew up in a huge black explosion, shattering all the windows in the train and sending a blast of wind with enough force to knock them all backwards. The whole storage car blew outwards and the cabin car in front of it was torn apart from the back up. The train bucked upwards from the blast, the whole back of the train coming up into the air. For a whole sickening second it seemed to hang there before toppling down upon the rest of the train. The crunch of metal on metal grinded in their ears as the rest of the back cabin car impaled the engineer's front car like a sword through a man's heart, crushing it like tinfoil. The train tipped over sideways off the track and rolled over onto its back once, tearing itself apart as it pounded against the ground. All lay still for a moment and then the engine in the very front car erupted into a fiery light show, a loud explosion of sparks and flames engulfing the entire train. The heroes couldn't tear there eyes away as the hot fire ravaged what was left. The Excess Express, once a pinnacle of wealth and a locomotive of unmatched beauty, was now a smoking, flaming mass of metal and glass and the deathbed of dozens of passengers.

They all stood there, staring in disbelief at the carnage that they had seen take place. Not a word was spoken, the deathly silence speaking more words than they ever could. Mario let go of Mimi's arm, leaving it hanging limp at her side.

She broke down into tears, her heart breaking to pieces as she realized a cold hard fact: she was the last surviving member of Count Bleck's crew. Everyone else was dead, gone from her life forever. The greatest friends she had ever had had been taken from her, and it was all too much. She dropped to her knees, wailing and crying.

'COUNT!' she shouted. 'WHY? WHY DIDN'T YOU COME? WHY?' She screamed into the air, a gut wrenching howl of despair. 'NASTASIA!' she cried, overcome with grief. 'TIMPANI! O'CHUNKS! WHY WHY WHY?'

Mario was still staring at the wreckage, now barely recognizable as the flashy vessel it had once been. He was shivering, his fists and jaw clenched.

Luigi dropped to his knees and Peach joined Mimi in her weeping. 'All those people...' the green brother said in a daze. 'All those innocent people...'

'I couldn't save them...' Mario breathed. 'I...I couldn't...there was no...' He brought his fists up to his face, trying to hide the pain written all over it. 'I told him...I told him I would save him...I...' At last, his composure shattered; the hero let loose a horrible howl from down in the deepest depths of his heart. He had failed them all, he had let them die...something he had vowed would never happen as long as he remained the Mushroom Kingdom's saviour. Tears were freely streaming down his cheeks as he joined Mimi on the ground, his gloved fingers digging into the dirt underneath him.

Fawful had gone pale; he was a villain through and through, and he knew that, but...there was a line for everyone that had to be drawn, a moral barrier that they couldn't cross. Bowser had it, Cackletta had it, and he had it. In witnessing this act of mass murder of innocent lives he had finally realized one stark truth: there was nothing, _nothing_ that Dimentio wouldn't stop at to realize his dream. It didn't matter who he had to kill, be it his enemies, be it innocent people, be it children, or even be it his own allies. Dimentio would do anything and everything to create a perfect world, and now that he had seen this act he at last realized exactly how horrible the Void was, wiping out everything in its path, not even permitting those who perished by it an aftergame to speak of.

As if in a dream, he took out his storage cube and pressed a few buttons, making a hover platform appear. 'Mario...' he croaked. 'We need...we need to have moving on...'

The plumber looked up at him, tears still in his eyes. He wiped them away. '...how can you...?'

'The Void...it is the time bomb of everything that has existence in this existence that it ours. If we do not move, then...' He motioned towards the train and his point was made.

Mario stared at him sadly. 'You're right...we need to...to go.'

They all climbed aboard with heavy hearts, the stronger ones carrying those who couldn't or wouldn't move on their own. Fawful took to the skies with his Headgear and they took off at a speed which nearly matched that of the train they had ridden only minutes before.

As they passed the wreckage they averted or closed their eyes; the only one whose eyes remained fixed on it were Mimi's, searching desperately for a sign of the one person she had failed to save.

There was none.

Grubba

Dimentio was practically leaping for joy. 'AHAHAHAHAHAHA!' he laughed, clapping his hands with a broad grin across his face. 'Grubba you _wonderful_ minion! You fantastic, amazing, WONDERFUL Clubba! AHAHAHAHAHA!'

Dimentio and Grubba surveyed the destroyed train before them, searching for any signs of life to snuff out. Of course there were none; nobody could have survived an attack such as that, not even Blumiere. Grubba didn't answer Dimentio at all, leaving his eyes on the sight his invention had created.

'Blumiere is dead~!' the magician sang happy. 'Blumiere is dead, gone to oblivion! My foolish half-brother is no more! AHAHAHAHA!' He sighed, content with the damage done. 'You've done well, my minion! Such _carnage!_ Hehehe...I'm quite pleased.' Grubba still said nothing, his gaze frozen in place. 'Ah well, I believe I will depart for now. Ciao, Grubba. Ahahaha.' He disappeared.

Grubba looked at the dismantled heap of junk metal before him. His invention,_ his_ invention, had been the cause of dozens of deaths of people who didn't deserve to die. They didn't have anything to do with him or Dimentio, hadn't done anything to distract or interfere with their plans, and were completely free of any association with them in any way. He was a murderer. A serial killer. Him.

The Clubba snorted, miffed. 'Pff. Shoulda been a bigger 'splosion.' He drew up a 2D box around himself and flipped out of the dimension without another thought.


	31. Chapter 31: Empty Love

Chapter 31: Empty Love

Doopliss

'I can't believe they're not DEAD!' Doopliss snarled. The idiot plumbers and their friends didn't even TRY to save anyone, and that's what their entire plan had depended on: Mario's inability to NOT help people.

'Mm,' Dimentio agreed. 'It's quite surprising. I would have thought they'd at least try to save someone aboard that train.' He grinned. 'Mimi tried Blumiere, but the poor fool just can't grasp life without his dear love. Ah ha ha.'

Grubba was sitting on his pillar, arms crossed, eyes trained on the floor. 'Maybe if I adjust tha energy ratios...' he muttered.

'What's up Grubba?' Doopliss asked. 'Still bummed about the bomb?'

'Huh?' He looked up and shrugged. 'Guess so. Thought it'd be better than it was.'

'Well you got rid of one of the heroes,' Esmine noted.

'Yeah, just cause 'e was too stupid ta get off the darn train,' the Clubba growled. 'The thing wouldn't 'ave been able to do any damage ta anythin' more stable.'

'Don't chastise yourself Grubba,' Dimentio sighed. 'The most you can do is simply make it better.'

'An' that's what I'm tryin' ta figure out: how to make it more deadly.'

The jester grinned sadistically. 'Just the attitude I need in a minion.'

Doopliss fought back a shiver as he looked at Dimentio's expression; that callous disregard for life itself was something he'd never get over, working for him.

A thought suddenly occurred to the Duplighost. 'Uh...Dimentio?' he asked.

'Yes, my sheeted minion?'

'Uh...what exactly are we trying to do with this Void thing?'

Dimentio's smiling expression didn't change. 'Have we not gone over this before? It is my aim to destroy all worlds with the Void and replace them all with a single, perfect world.'

'R-right...' Doopliss murmured. 'But...what about the people?'

'...the people?' the magician repeated, as if the thought had not occurred to him before.

'Yeah, all those innocent people who'll be killed by the Void. What happens to them?'

'Haha...ahahahaha!' Dimentio laughed. 'Ah, I understand! You're worried you will suffer the same fate, aren't you? Fear not Doopliss, you shall be treated with a portion of the world all your own. Power beyond your wildest dreams!'

Doopliss sighed. 'Whew, haha...caught me.'

Dimentio turned to Esmine. 'It is time to depart, Esmine. They will all be arriving at Nautoville very soon, train or no train.'

The succubus nodded. 'Right. I won't let you down.' She smiled. 'It'll be easy.' She drew up a 2D box and flipped out.

'What of me?' Midbus asked. 'I want to crush skulls.'

'Of course you shall! Go with Esmine, but do not be seen by the heroes. Your time is nigh.' Midbus grinned and flipped out as well. 'And now, Grubba and Doopliss, I will take my leave. I trust you will be fine here with Valex and his men for now?'

'A' course,' Grubba said.

'Yup,' Doopliss affirmed.

'Then ciao!' Dimentio disappeared.

Doopliss slumped after his boss' departure, a small pit growing in his stomach. 'Uh...Grubba?' he asked. 'You know...there were innocent people on that train, right?'

''Course there were,' the Clubba said matter-of-factly.

'But...do you not feel...BAD for killing them?'

'Nope,' Grubba answered. 'They were in tha way a' them heroes. S'too bad fer them I say. Besides...' He looked up to the ceiling. 'That there Void's gonna take 'em all anyway, so why bother worryin'? Let 'em have a nice time in the Aftergame before their souls get slurped up like a cola.' He grinned. 'I get my kingdom an' ever-young bod either way!'

Doopliss was cold, and that wasn't just because he was a ghost. He was beginning to feel like doing this wasn't such a good idea after all. Sure, he had done some pretty bad things in his life, but the worst thing he'd ever done was turn a couple of villagers into pigs every now and then, and they were normal now anyway. When he looked at Dimentio, who had no qualms about murdering innocent people even out of boredom, and at Grubba, who had just singlehandedly blown up an entire luxury train's worth of passengers and shrugged it off like it was nothing simply for the sake of making himself better than he was, he felt like he wasn't among _villains_ anymore; he felt like he was around _monsters_. He remembered what happened last time something like this had happened: he and the two Shadow Sirens, Beldam and Marilyn, had awakened the evil Shadow Queen, who had unleashed a veil of darkness over the entire world, but was later stopped by (of course) Mario. He hadn't shown it, but he had been terrified by the Queen, afraid of her unhampered evil. It didn't feel natural.

'Welp!' Grubba said suddenly. 'I'm gonna go ta bed now. Pretty tired.' He left without another word, leaving Doopliss alone with his troubled thoughts.

Mario

Mario was one of the two people awake; the other was Fawful, who was forcing himself to stay up so as to not fly himself into the ground with his Headgear and to ensure the safety of those on the hover platform. It had been about an hour since the sun had fallen behind the horizon, covering them in a blanket of blackness and stars, forcing the platform's automatic lights to come on.

He looked up; the Void hung in the sky, black lightning crackling from its core. His heart writhed as he realized how large it had become. They only had mere days left. His heart was littered with questions: could they even create a Purity Heart? Even with it, would they defeat Dimentio and stop the Void? Which was correct: the Light Prognosticus or the Dark one?

'Why is this so _hard_...?' he sighed. Normally it was easy to resolve incidents. He'd jump into the fray without a second thought, effortlessly going through armies to save the day. No one had ever been hurt. No one had ever died. There had been some close calls, sure; Bowser with the Star Rod had nearly killed him, the Shadow Queen had nearly brought darkness upon the entire world, when Super Dimentio had tried to kill them he had actually believed he and the others wouldn't have been able to come out victorious. While he had never told anybody this, he had been scared when Bowletta, the demented union of Cackletta's soul and Bowser's unwilling body, had swallowed the two of them whole. The Shroobs had brought terror to both the past and the present, and the final battle against the elder Princess Shroob sister had backed them up against the wall. He remembered Peach's unconscious body lying half-exposed behind the throne and a shudder went through his body.

All those incidents had, admittedly, affected him, but it had never mattered. It didn't matter if he was romping across the Mushroom Kingdom to Bowser's various castles, doing battle against creatures aplenty, soaring through space or fighting paint-like versions of himself; he had never once been truly afraid for the safety of others, being able to push it to the back of his mind and get on with the missions. But now...now people had actually_ died_. Nastasia, Timpani, O'Chunks, Blumiere, and all the passengers on the Excess Express...each of their deaths had carved a hole in his powerful heart, and each death had put an extra weight on his shoulders, reminding him of the fate that awaited everyone dear to him if he lost. There was no hiding from the consequences this time; those consequences had already happened.

He clenched his fists and looked away; no matter the pain in his heart or the weight on his shoulders, he would fight to the bitter end, even if it meant sacrificing himself to the Void and condemning himself to non-existence. 'Fawful,' he called to the Bean.

The sound of rocket jets faded slowing in from behind and the young inventor came up beside the platform, his Headgear's mouth acting as a flashlight. 'You had the calling?' he asked.

'Yeah. How long do you expect it's going to take to get there?'

Fawful looked at his own wrist, revealing a new wristwatch-like thing. He pressed a few buttons and a holographic screen came up. He inspected it for a few seconds and shut it off. 'Thirteen minutes and forty-two seconds,' he answered.

'Exactly?'

'No, it has roughness.'

'Ah.' He returned his gaze frontwards.

'When we have arriving at the ville of "Nauto," what will we be doing then?'

Mario hesitated; it wasn't clear-cut-and-dry this time. The Bean and Cobalt stars had been simple to find, and Rosalina had appeared before them when they knew where to go. Nautoville was going to be tricky. 'We find that person who's waiting for us. They'll know what to do.'

'We have hoping,' the Bean added.

'Yeah...' Mario muttered. 'We hope.'

Nautoville came into view five minutes later, a huge metropolis littered with high rising buildings, skyscrapers and suburbs, far different from the normally humble villages and small towns that made up most of the Mushroom Kingdom's living areas. Even Toad Town, while large, had that homey, humble feeling to it; Nautoville was the future incarnate, a city for techno-geeks and multimillionaires looking for a different brand of city. At this time in the night it was mostly blackened, the odd light or two on in a few buildings with some street lights to show the way through the place. A large wall surrounded the city, a huge gate being the only way in.

'Reminds me of Glitzville...' Mario whispered to himself, remembering the large city above the clouds.

'That wall has largeness,' Fawful noted, slowing barrel rolling as he flew.

'Probably to keep people like Bowser out,' the plumber ventured. 'It's surprising more towns haven't done that yet. Make a huge, strong wall and the only thing they have to worry about is an air attack, which doesn't normally happen here.'

'Cackletta had the doing of that,' the boy reminded him.

'...that was the Beanbean Kingdom.'

The city was closing fast. Mario rubbed the tiredness from his eyes and tapped his brother on the head. 'Hnguh...?' the green brother slurred.

'Luigi, wake up,' Mario whispered. 'We're almost to Nautoville.'

Luigi sat up groggily. 'How long did I sleep?'

'About an hour. Wake up the rest.'

They set about waking up the rest of the heroes, every one of them struggling to stay awake. 'Hrng...five more minutes mommy...' Bowser snored.

'Bowser, you need to wake up,' Peach sighed. She flicked him on the nose.

'GRAH!' he roared, sitting straight up and nearly threw everyone off the platform. 'WHO DID IT?'

'I did,' the princess answered.

'Oh, well okay,' the Koopa said, calming down instantly.

Mimi yawned. 'What a night...' she murmured. 'I wonder if Blumiere slept this badly...' She gave a start and her eyes widened as she remembered the events of the previous day, then hid her face in her hands.

'We'll be at Nautoville shortly guys,' Mario told them. 'You can see it in front of us.'

'Looks techy,' Bowser noted.

'Yeah,' Luigi agreed, shoulders sagging. 'I hope they have hotels...'

'It will,' Peach assured. 'Nautoville takes in tourists all the time.'

All of their eyes turned to the city before them; their final destination was there. They would have to get the item and get out.

They had little time left.

Mimi

'Mister Mario!' one of the gate guards cried. 'We've been expecting you and all your friends!'

'Glad to see someone's not trying to kill us,' the red plumber yawned.

The guards started and looked at each other. 'Erm...kill you?' one asked.

'Hang on...' the other said suddenly. 'You were supposed to arrive with the rest of the Excess Express. Where is it? Where are the passengers?'

A dead silence fell over the group; each member looked away, a different expression of hurt present on each face. '...it's gone,' Mario finally answered.

'"Gone?" What do you mean, gone?'

'It's gone. It's been destroyed, along with all the passengers that were on it.'

'You were _attacked?_' the first guard gasped. 'How?'

'We had an imposter on it,' the plumber explained. 'He planted this new kind of bomb on it. The train is a wreck. We lost...three good heroes on the journey. Two in an attack near the supplies stop halfway and one in the explosion.' A shadow passed over his face.

'We're...sorry for your lost, Mister Mario. We're sorry for all of you.'

'...it's all right,' Mario sighed, waving off the condolences. 'It's a risk they knew they were taking.'

'But...you've got to be sad for—'

'Can we drop the subject?' he demanded quickly. 'Sorry if I don't like talking about my recently-dead friends.' His eyes burned into the Toads'. 'We need to rest and sleep,' he told them. 'We're all tired. Please, just let us inside.'

The Toads' expressions saddened. 'We'll do whatever we can for all of you. It's the least we can all do for your incredible efforts.' They looked up behind the group to the sky where the Void hung, a gigantic mass disrupting a clear, peaceful skyline. Without another word they opened the gate, pressing a button which automatically made the huge doors move.

An escort was waiting for them.

Mimi flopped down on her hotel room bed. It was larger than she had expected, with a shower/bath, a big bed, a sink, a closet, and a mini safe for all her belongings (why use one when you have Hammerspace?). Doors to a balcony could be seen, covered from the light of the moon with drapes. The bed was very, very comfortable. By this time she just wanted to lay down and sleep and sleep and sleep.

But...now that she had been up, she was no longer tired.

Groaning, she got up and reflected on the recent events. She felt hollow, the shock and sadness having spent itself, leaving her with an empty, depressed heart.

Blumiere was gone. The reality of it was stark and cold, yet it didn't depress her further; rather, a fire seemed to well up in her heart, making her more determined than ever to end all of this madness. She got up off the bed and moved over to the balcony entrance. Flinging open the drapes she walked outside.

The night view from inside Nautoville was a new kind of beautiful. Huge, towering buildings loomed everywhere, shining in the moonlight and casting large shadows over the city. Streetlights illuminated the roads, covering them in a hazy yellow light. There was a decent amount of people up and about at this hour, going about frantically to do whatever they needed to do. Everything was so foreign to Mimi, who in all her dimensional travels had never seen a city like this. She noticed that though it was late people moved quickly, almost chaotically, as if they were in a perpetual hurry. She understood why; the Void was large. If she had lived a normal life she'd be just as worried as they were. She didn't live a normal life, though.

_'A little girl at heart? Don't make me laugh. You are what you always have been, and the only reason Count Bleck recruited you in the first place. A _monster_.'_

She wasn't even a normal human being.

_'Yes...you're a monster, and always will be. You've served me well in the past after all, my perfect, monstrous creation!'_

'I'll avenge you all...' she whispered powerfully. 'I'll make up for all the people I've killed...I'm not a monster...not anymore.'

'You really have developed quite the sense of self.'

Mimi spun around to see the drapes magically shut and the doors close as Dimentio walked out from the shadows. 'D-Dimentio?' She stepped back and froze as her back touched the end of the balcony.

'That would be my name.' He reached up and took off his mask and hat, letting his head be shown. The mask and hat disappeared with a snap of his fingers. 'I really was wondering when you and I could have a little chat...for old time's sake.' He smiled in his signature way.

'Old time's sake? WHAT old time's sake? You DESTROYED that!' The girl suddenly felt her fear transform into anger. 'You murder all my friends and then you want to _have a little chat?_'

'Precisely! Ahahaha!'

'You're such an...I don't even believe you!' Mimi clenched her fist, a Rubee appearing in her hand. 'Hold still while I drive this through your skull!'

'Ah ah ah!' the jester warned with a wag of his finger. 'If you cause a commotion Nautoville's citizens may think you're dangerous. After all...' He teleported beside her and put an arm around her shoulder. 'I can vanish quite quickly. All they'll see...is a destructive monster.'

'I am NOT a monster,' Mimi snarled, shoving him away; the Rubee disappeared from her hand. 'I'm a logically thinking, feeling, sentient being, Dimentio, and you need to know that!'

Dimentio floated a short distance away and looked Mimi up and down, the smile never leaving his face. 'A logically thinking...feeling...sentient being. Hah.' He chuckled. 'It really is as I said...you've developed such a sense of self. You're doing things because _you_ want to...not because others are telling you to.'

'Why are you even here? Why haven't you tried to kill me yet?' She narrowed her eyes. 'Why _haven't_ you tried to kill me yet?'

'Didn't I say? All I wanted...was a simple chat.' His eyes glowed in the moonlight; his bright, almost multifaceted yellow eye sparkled with a golden excellence while his dull grey eye shined with a slick sheen.

'Well here you go: you're a sick, twisted, evil freak who needs to hang all his aspirations, climb down into the deepest darkest pit in the Underwhere and leave us all alone. There's your chat!'

Dimentio's smile changed; it became less mocking and a little more sincere, his eyes reflecting a sad longing. 'Perhaps that is all true.'

'You're right, it IS!' the girl spat. 'It's no wonder everyone HATES you!'

'You don't,' the magician stated matter-of-factly.

Mimi set her jaw. 'You're wrong.'

'No...I'm not. You still love me, just as you always have. Perhaps it is simply destiny.'

'You're so full of _mph!_' Mimi ended her sentence with a muffled gasp as Dimentio teleported behind her and clamped a hand over her mouth.

'Don't deny it Mimi...' he whispered, and she shivered, closing her hands over his arm in an attempt to get his hand away. 'Even after everything I've done, after all the lives I've taken...you love me. You can't shake that feeling...and you _hate_ yourself for it.' He loosened his grip and spun Mimi around to face him, clenching his hands around her arms. 'I'm right...aren't I?'

Mimi's words stuck in her throat as she stared up at him; his smile had completely disappeared, replaced with a calm, pining stare. _Read me like a book..._ she thought. 'I...'

'You still love me...more than Blumiere, more than Fawful...I am the one with the biggest spot in your heart, and you know it.' His voice was dropping lower and lower. He leaned forward; Mimi's heart was pounding, her face reddening.

'Stop...' she murmured.

'You still love me...' His eyes were locked on hers. 'And I...'

He closed the distance between them and kissed her, wrapping his arms around her waist. Mimi's heart skipped a beat as her emotions went wild, anger and fear battling with elation and longing. All her memories of him surfaced for a moment and then vanished, all his evil acts disappearing from her mind in an instant. Her chest swelled, filling with a warmth like she had never felt in years. Tears fell from her eyes as she knew, finally, where her heart was set.

She loved Dimentio. She had always loved Dimentio. The fact that he was an enemy wouldn't ever change that.

She put her arms around his shoulders, savouring the first real kiss they had ever shared together.


	32. Chapter 32: Second Thoughts

Chapter 32: Second Thoughts

Dimentio

Dimentio's lips were closed around Mimi's, his arms around her waist while her arms were wrapped around his shoulders.

A warmth, spreading through his body like a calming nectar. Wonderful happiness, waving away all his mental weights. A light feeling in his heart, excitement and rapture overflowing in his body. Those were the things he expected to feel as he kissed the girl he loved.

He felt none of those things. His body remained the same temperature as before. His mental weights still remained, all the worries and stress piled up on his mind. His heart was still heavy in his chest and thoughts of the punishment that would befall all of the imperfect worlds in existence still present in his brain. His heart remained closed from love even now, waves of pain moving in to fill the massive void left in his soul by the Chaos Heart's tinkering. Mimi didn't have a place in his heart.

He didn't love her at all.

He broke the kiss and both of them slowly opened their eyes. Mimi's red eyes glinted in the moonlight like jewels, tear tracks running down her cheeks. Dimentio's expression was monochrome, bordering on a frown due to the pain blossoming in his chest. The girl before him bore a strange expression: it was a mix between horrified disbelief and calming happiness, as if she couldn't decide if what happened was good or bad.

She hugged herself, staring up at him. 'Dimentio...' she whispered.

The magician closed his eyes and brought his hand up, magical sparks dancing along his palm. 'You are nothing compared to the power of myself and the Chaos Heart. There are a million ways I could end your life right now, Mimi...' he said quietly, his words heavy. 'I could burn you to ashes and scatter you on the wind, magically overload your body and make you explode, drain every inch of your magical energy and leave you as a lifeless shell...you would be at my mercy, powerless to do anything to stop your death.'

'Then why won't you do it...?' It was the simplest question in the worlds to Dimentio, yet...he had no way of answering it. It wasn't because of the love and attachment he had to Mimi, because he couldn't love. He wasn't killing her right now because...he knew he used to love her. He used to love her, and now he had blocked that off. After Rosabella's appearance to him had briefly returned his feelings, he was seeking them again now more than ever. The emotion that he had wanted to abandon for so many years was one that he was now seeking to take hold of again.

And he hated it.

His pain was intensifying, growing from a dull ache to a sharp, stabbing agony. He winced and turned away, looking out at the city skyline. 'This is the only chance you'll get,' he told her. 'The only time I will let you go unscathed. After this...I will do everything in my power to see that you inhabit the Underwhere when the worlds meet their ends.' He placed a hand over his heart. 'You and all your allies.' He walked forward to the end of the balcony, a pained sigh escaping his lips. 'My perfect world will become...reality.' He raised his hand and pressed his thumb and middle finger together. 'Ciao, Mimi.'

Suddenly a pair of hands grabbed his arm, holding it down. The boy started and turned; Mimi was gripping his forearm tightly, longing in her eyes. 'Dimentio...' she said desperately. 'Come with me...stop all this insanity!'

Dimentio just stared at her, mouth half open. The pain in his heart was escalating even more than it already had; he grimaced for a moment, pushing the pain down. 'Come with you...? Why?'

'I...I need you!' she exclaimed, tightening her grip. 'Don't go again! You...you tried to kill me, you tried to kill us all, but...I don't want you to go and leave again! Don't you understand?'

The jester grinded his teeth in silence as more pain pounded in his heart. If pain was replacing the love he would feel, what would the _love_ feel like? 'What is there to understand? I can't love.'

'Then...then love again. Stop closing yourself off.' Mimi's eyes pleaded with him.

Dimentio snapped his fingers and Mimi's hand was thrust off his arm. He looked down upon Mimi with a calm, controlled irritation. 'I closed off love because it is an—'

'It is _not_...' Mimi cut in with a quietly growing fury. 'An imperfect emotion. Love is powerful in so many ways. Ways that can make a person happy enough to sacrifice everything to be with someone. Ways that can complete a person when nothing else, not even everything they want in the world, can. Ways that can destroy the Chaos Heart and the Void for good. You can't just...seal it up.'

'If that is the case, then how was I able to stop myself from feeling it with such a minimal after-effect?'

'You're in denial, I know it.' She closed her hands around his, making his heart twinge. 'Please, think this through...'

'I will not turn back...after three thousand years I'm so close!'

'There's something that you want more than a perfect world Dimentio—'

'There is _nothing_ I want more than that.' Even as he said the words he felt his heart growing heavy with sadness and longing.

_'Dimentio.'_

The magician started; that was the Chaos Heart. _What?_

_'You say you are met with a mere "minimal after-effect?" I beg to differ.'_

Dimentio frowned and pulled his hands away from Mimi's. _What in the worlds are you talking about?_

'Dimentio?' Mimi asked. 'Is something...wrong?'

_'My efforts to shield your heart from love are far more difficult than you know. I dedicate much of my energy to keep it from breaking through. Even more is spent trying to quell the pain that rushes in to take its place...yet that is at times impossible.'_

The man's eyes widened and he moved a hand to his heart. 'You mean...?'

_'The pain you feel is merely the residue that makes it past my defences. More...so much more is numbed and stopped. The girl is correct: love is more powerful than you believe it to be.'_

'You...you're telling me that you're FAILING in your task?'

_'...I don't care for your tone, boy.'_

Dimentio's eyes bulged and he whirled around on instinct; no one was behind him, of course. _BOY? You insolent—_

_'If you're so certain of the "minimal after-effects..."'_ the Chaos Heart crooned slyly, _'then perhaps you would like to feel what your actions have truly wrought upon you.'_

The jester tensed as a small jolt went through his body, making the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. A buzz sounded in his ears and his sight flashed; for a moment, he felt absolutely nothing, the shock of the sudden pain making his body's systems flicker. He fell forward and crashed to the ground, his head colliding with the balcony's rail on the way down.

'Dimentio!' Mimi's cry sounded a million miles away.

The buzzing disappeared, his sight returned, and his body regained its controls. With this came a horrible, hellish pain that went well beyond unbearable. A million knives impaling his body, white hot flames licking at his skin, ice cold water freezing him solid were the things he would have thought of had he been capable of holding a sentient thought. Any sound he would have made got caught in his throat, his lungs constricted from the pain. He writhed on the ground, coughing, choking sounds escaping his mouth, his eyes wide and watering.

The love he blocked off had been replaced by pain.

This was the true extent of his actions.

He slammed his eyes shut, a cry fighting to be heard, only to be stopped by the sheer agony the magician was experiencing.

_'This is the pain I have been holding back,'_ the Chaos Heart told him. _'This is how powerful an emotion love is. And this...is the emotion you detest so horribly so. Quite a shock...isn't it?'_

Dimentio slammed his head on the ground, the sensation unnoticed by his burning nerves. _Away from here..._ he thought. _Away from this girl...!_

Suddenly all the pain was sucked away. A _ping!_ sounded in his ears as the dimension was altered around him. Mid-teleport he screamed, the sound echoing through his mind.

His dimensional warp ended and his scream was given vocal form. A loud, agonized howl erupted off his tongue, so pained it made his throat hoarse.

He collapsed on the ground panting, sweating, his body burning from the after effects of the horrible pain. He felt grass below him and heard wind blow loudly, whipping about like a cyclone, but he stayed rooted to the ground. A large crackle of electricity boomed in the sky and a tremor shook the entire world.

Dimentio looked up; the Void completely covered the horizon, not a single cloud visible. The sun's rays were cloaked in a black veil letting in only just enough light to see. The end of the world was nigh...yet there was no one panicking.

He rose his head to find a village in ruins, houses caved into the ground or collapsed in on themselves from the dimensional quakes. Birds flew like mad through the air on a course for anywhere but here, yet there wasn't any people screaming. That was because every eye was trained on him.

They were human, oddly enough, with no real differences from Mario or Peach or Timpani. The hair was normal, the skin was normal, the eyes were normal...yet Dimentio knew they were somehow different in their makeup from the humans from the Mushroom World or from his own home-dimension. They all stared at him, curious as to what kind of strange being he was. His eyes went over all of them, taking in every detail of every person.

There was a boy standing there, eyes probing him with interest. 'Mister?' he asked.

Another tremor shook the world and the jester let his head down again. _Why...?_ he thought bitterly. _Why can't I make up my _mind_...? Why can't I let go of love...why can't I let go of her...?_ He waited; normally this was something the Chaos Heart would reply irritatingly to, saying something along the lines of "You've done it to yourself." No response came; the Heart was silent in his mind.

Dimentio clenched his fists, anger overtaking confusion; how could he realize his dream if he kept going on like this? How could a perfect world ever be realized if it's god was chained by the shackles of love? How could he do anything if his heart was set somewhere else? That was exactly why he had blocked his heart off from love using the Chaos Heart, and now it hadn't done anything to make his life any easier.

_Three thousand years of effort..._ he thought, his anger boiling over into rage. _And now I start re-thinking..._ He could feel his body burning with fury, his bright yellow iris glowing red.

_'No...'_

_No..._

Dimentio screamed in ire, lifting up into the air, hands clutching his hair. Darkness reeled off his body, his one bright eye shining dangerously. 'DAMN THIS INFERNAL HEART! DAMN LOVE!' With another yell he flung a dark blast at the crowd, sending a chunk flying. That was when they began to panic, a chorus of voices wailing in terror. 'DAMN ALL THESE UNDERWHERE-FORSAKEN WORLDS!' He threw another blast, relishing heatedly in the explosion and screams that followed. 'DIE!' he bellowed, throwing another. 'DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE! Hehehe...AHAHAHAHAHA!' As enraged as he was, crazed, sadistic laughter was how he chose to portray his emotions. He hurled blocks of powerful dimensional magic at people, cackling as the force threw them up into the air. The crowd was in hysterics, people running away from him as fast as they could, the mass shifting uncontrollably. 'WRITHE IN _PAIN!_ he hollered with demented glee. Another blast was already forming in his hand. 'FEEL YOUR FEAR...FEEL—'

A sudden, stark brightness in the crowd caught his eye. In contrast to the darkness around him and the frenzy of shapes, this clear, light person just stood, staring at him through the mob.

A person with long, pink hair...

His anger began to subside. 'Wh...?' he breathed. 'H-hey!'

'Mister...?'

He stopped and slowly turned around. The boy he had seen earlier was staring at him again, terror written all over his face. His eyes glistened with tears and there was dirt smeared across his face. Dimentio started back. _Why don't you run...?_ he thought.

The boy reached behind his back and pulled out a flower, worn and wilting, petals ripped off. He wondered who the boy had intended to give it to before he arrived. He watched as the child held the flower out to him and sniffled. 'Don't be sad,' he told him.

The jester blinked; the boy was giving the flower to _him?_ But why? Why would he do that?

The boy pushed his arms out a little more. 'Don't be sad...' he repeated.

_He's giving me a gift...but..._ Dimentio didn't understand. What could have possessed this boy to do such a thing for a murderer? _It is..._ Looking into the boy's eyes, he could see a sympathetic sadness. _Out of the kindness of his heart...out of love..._

Out of love...

Dimentio realized he had tears in his eyes. His heart pounded heavily, pain seeping through the Chaos Heart's efforts to contain it. His mind was in a million different places at once, trying to get a grip on what he was seeing. Love...this was what love could compel a person...in three thousand years, this was the first time...

Unexpected anger welled up in his heart again. He slammed his eyes shut, feeling the tears trail down his cheeks. A sob escaped his mouth before he howled again. 'GET AWAY!' He swept his hand out, feeling power rush to his fingertips. 'GET—'

A fiery explosion of heat and sound suddenly engulfed the boy, a pulse rippling through the dimensional space. The boy was completely gone, vaporized, the flower fluttering on the wind as it disintegrated in midair.

The crowd was still hysterical, but to the magician everything seemed quiet as death. His red eye faded back to yellow, the darkness disappearing. His arms hung limply at his sides as he stared at the space where the boy had been. The brightness in the crowd was gone.

Another tremor shook the dimension and a loud sound like the tearing of the sky itself went through the air. Dimentio blinked hard and stepped back as a flash interrupted his vision.

'The world is ending...' he muttered to himself. 'It seems I did that boy a favour.' He snapped his fingers, watching the universe change around him.

Mimi

Mimi stirred.

She got up out of bed, and got dressed, then set about brushing her hair. As she did so, she reflected on the events that had transpired last night.

Dimentio had come to see her. Just to talk. He had...

Her face reddened and she frowned nervously. He had _kissed_ her. And she had returned it. He had kissed her...and she had returned it.

She had kissed him back.

Why? Why did she do it? He had done so many horrible things, yet one kiss from him and she didn't care anymore. Everything had become right, even though he had killed so many people, even though people were still losing their existence at his hand. Why?

She knew the answer.

It was because she loved him. She loved him too much to turn away. She had known it for so long, yet she had tried to fight against it. It was impossible to avoid; she was in love with him and that was all there was to it.

_'You still love me...and I...'_

She shook her head. 'He's your ENEMY,' she told herself. 'You can't...get attached.'

She finished doing her hair and put the brush away, then took two hair bands and put her hair into the pigtails she liked so much. Something was nagging in her heart, thinking of the situation. Guilt and nervousness; something else was wrong with her feelings for Dimentio.

_Knock knock knock!_

Even as she walked to answer her door, she wondered; what was so wrong? What was it she wasn't remembering? She opened the door.

'Good morning to you, says I!'

Mimi froze at the sight of Fawful's face, smiling with a rejuvenated happiness. That was right...Fawful. 'Uh...h-hey Fawful, how're you?'

'I have the wellness that one is having when he has much sleep. How is you?'

'Uh...I'm good too.' She forced a smile. 'What're we doing today?'

Fawful's smile disappeared, replaced with a more serious expression. 'Red mustache has anxiety,' he replied. 'He says...' The boy shifted nervously. 'He says that the Mushroom World only has a time that has littleness before the end.' As if to reinforce his thought, the Void crackled and boomed in the sky with such a force that Mimi's neck hairs stood on end. 'You must have the following of me to downstairs where we will be meeting the one who is to have the helping of all of us.'

'Then after that it's just...him, isn't it?'

Fawful nodded. 'Yesing. The battle of finality.'

Mimi ran a hand through her hair nervously. 'Well...let's go then.'

Fawful nodded. 'Oh,' he added. 'You have looking nice today.'

The girl's heart panged with guilt. 'Thanks Fawful...' she muttered.

They took the elevator downstairs, then went out to the lobby to find everyone waiting there. Mario stood tall, arms crossed. 'Good,' he said. 'You're here.' There was anxiety in his voice. 'I was afraid you were taking too long.' Another sound came from the Void. 'I don't think we have much time. We need to get the item and get out.'

'Mister Mario! Mister Mario!' A Toad came in through the front doors looking flustered and blushing.

'Guess that's convenient,' Luigi noted.

'Your escort is here!' The Toad smiled broadly.

'Already? That's great!' Mario's face lit up in a moment of relief and everyone found themselves smiling with him. 'When do we meet him?'

'She's right outside,' the Toad answered, and giggled.

'She?' Bowser snorted. 'Our guy's a GIRL?'

'Is that a problem?' both Mimi and Peach said simultaneously. Bowser looked away and didn't respond. The Toad opened the doors.

'Oh!' came a voice that Mimi found horrifyingly familiar. 'Would you look at that?'

Fawful and Mimi both froze; standing before them was that red-haired girl from the Excess Express. She looked at them both, a small smile on her lips. 'Hi,' Mario greeted. 'You must be the one who's been waiting for us here.'

'You must be _Mario!_' she beamed, grinning. 'I've heard so much about you!'

'Of course you have...' the younger brother muttered dejectedly.

'And you...' the girl continued, turning to him. 'You're Luigi, aren't you? The infamous younger brother?'

'Uh...infamous? Heh heh...well...' Luigi blushed and scratched the back of his head.

'Princess Peach, right?' She smiled. 'You do look like a princess.'

'Pleased to meet you,' Peach responded with a kind-hearted smile.

'And Bowser...' she said, staring at him. '...moving on.'

'Hey!' the Koopa growled. 'Why don't I get a mention?'

The girl looked at Mimi, then at Fawful, then back to Mimi, and finally back to Fawful. She crossed her arms and her eyes seemed aglow with a dark knowledge. 'Mimi,' she said. 'Fawful.'

Mimi looked over at Fawful; his jaw was set and his eyes glared hard at the girl. 'Helloing,' he said. 'Nice to have the meeting of you.' Feign ignorance; that was probably for the best.

'Yeah,' the green girl added. 'Nice to meet you.'

'And back to you.' She regarded them all. 'That's right. I am the one who will guide you to your final item...the Heart Stone.'

'Sounds like our item,' Luigi said.

'So,' she declared. 'No time to waste then, let's go.'

'Wait,' Mario called. 'What's your name?'

The girl smiled again and put her index finger over her mouth. 'Thank you for asking, _Super_ Mario,' she chuckled. 'I...am Esmine.' The Void boomed in the sky and in that moment her ruby eyes seemed to glitter and glow. Mimi heard Fawful gasp slightly; when she turned to look at him he held a hand over his mouth and was blushing profusely. Looking at the other males she saw Fawful wasn't alone. Peach met Mimi's eyes, her face expressing sudden confusion and concern. Mimi frowned.

Who was this Esmine?

Dimentio

Dimentio slammed his fists against the wall. He pounded and pounded and smacked his head against it, gritting his teeth in agony.

_'Mister...don't be sad.'_

That boy...he had...

_'Why won't you kill me...?'_

Mimi...she...

He could feel tears running down his face, his heart aching for the sensation that it had been denied, burning in his chest like fire. All the things he had done...all the people he had killed...

'Was I...wrong?' he breathed, quivering. 'Is my...perfect world...a sham? An...illusion?' That boy, innocent and carefree, kind to someone who maimed and murdered. Mimi, the one person his heart knew he belonged with. Mario and Luigi, the selfless heroes fighting for justice and safety...and all the innocents that they fought for. Even the villains...Bowser and Fawful...they could be happy and sad, angry and calm. They could love...his heart panged again and he remembered for the umpteenth time what it felt like: that warmth, that amazing, completing, wholesome warmth. Why had he gotten rid of it? Why was it so imperfect...? 'How could I...take life away? Take existence away? All those people...all those souls...' He cried out and pounded the wall again. All the people he had crushed in the name of his dream, all those he had killed even simply for enjoyment...they were all like shards of glass to his heart. Blumiere and Timpani...even Esmine's...

How could one event change everything he believed in? Was love really that strong?

_Ba-bump...ba-bump..._ His heart pounded in his chest and he could feel a force throughout his body. Love...the only thing that could combat the Chaos Heart...the polar opposite to the driving force of the Dark Prognosticus...

The book that had been in his life for three thousand years straight...

A pain exploded in him and he dropped to the floor, arms wrapped around his chest. 'Why...is this...?' he gasped.

_'Your lack of dedication...displeases me.'_

Dimentio's eyes widened at the sound of the Chaos Heart's voice in his head. 'What...are you...?'

_'Love is completely worthless...' _it said, it's voice echoing. _'A blockade...a mere distraction...'_ Dimentio could feel power wrapping around him like a blanket. Horrible images played through his mind; images of his past, images of those he had killed and those who had wronged him. Rosabella's betrayal, Mimi's actions against him, his mother abandoning him with his father and brothers...

'L-love is...' he stammered, shivering.

_'People have _wronged_ you...' _the Heart told him fiercely. _'People have wronged others. The boy you saw...merely a fledgling. He would grow old and bitter, falling to imperfection and sin like the rest. Don't you remember?'_

'I...I r-remember...' the jester breathed. 'Imperfection...cannot exist...'

_'It is your duty...your destiny...to eliminate everything. Eliminate everything, destroy it, reduce it to nothing...tear...apart...EVERYTHING!'_

'Tear...apart...everything...that's right...' A smile was creeping to life on his face, his eyes still wide. 'Destroy all worlds...and create it all anew...hehehehe...hahahaha...AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!' He threw back his head, laughing as if to the entire world. It was all absurd, all this conflict, all this drama. The Chaos Heart had reminded him of who he really was: the Master of Magicians, the Pleaser of Crowds...Dimentio, the Charming Magician! Dimentio, the ruler of the perfect world! 'AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!'

Chaos Heart

_'What a fool...strung along by love and earthly emotions, just like the rest. You are as imperfect as all of them, Dimentio. Your dream will not end, the Void will not be closed. All worlds will be annihilated...because that is what __**I**__ want. That...is __**MY**__ desire.'_


	33. Chapter 33: The Heart Stone

Chapter 33: The Heart Stone

Mimi

The sun was low in the sky as they walked, following the strange girl named Esmine. The Void's enormous space in the sky blotted out half of the sun, the bright star giving off light in a strange eclipse-like way. A small quiver shook the world, less like a quake and more like a strong vibration. Mario was right; the Mushroom World wasn't going to last much longer. They only had so much time left.

'Uh...Esmine?' Mimi jogged up to the woman, trying to ignore the suddenly _love struck_ faces of Mario, Luigi, Bowser, and Fawful. 'Where're we going to?'

Esmine glanced in her direction, then chuckled. 'To the Heart Stone of course. Deep underground.'

'Under...underground? Why there?' Mimi suddenly felt nervous.

'Where else would be better to protect such an object?'

'What IS the Heart Stone?'

She smiled. 'The very essence of love's power.'

Mimi frowned; that kind of thing sounded like it belonged in a fairytale. Then again, the Pure Hearts' energy WAS love, so she shouldn't have been surprised. 'What IS that?'

Esmine's smile broadened. 'Exactly what it sounds like.'

Mimi could hear the _click, click, click_ing of the lolita-dressed girl's high heels on the sidewalk; she walked with a confident, almost conceited stride. Mimi hated it; it was as if she thought she was superior to everyone. 'The Heart Stone is powerful, an artefact with exactly the opposite kind of energy that the Chaos Heart generates. On its own it wouldn't be too useful, but together with other things it's invaluable. I trust you have what you need with you?'

'Yeah,' the green girl answered. 'A Beanstar and a Cobalt Star.'

'Wishing powers and pure untampered energy. Very nice.'

They reached a building in the middle of the city; a few small building guarded by no one. The door opened at the touch of a button and when they all walked in the building was dark. Esmine flicked on a light switch. Prison cells lined the sides, worn and dusty from years of neglect and inactivity.

'This...' Peach breathed. 'This is a prison!'

Esmine looked back at the princess. 'Yes. An underground prison built for the obvious purpose.'

'How did I not know about this?' she exclaimed angrily. 'I'm the monarch of the Mushroom Kingdom for Grambi's sake!'

'Obviously there's a lot you don't know about if villains are creating castles and fortresses right under your nose.' She snickered. 'Nautoville has a gritty past.'

'How do you know all this?' Mimi asked. 'You've got answers for everything.'

'I did my research well, little girl. When all worlds are being destroyed you tend to try and find out everything you can if you have the power.' She walked to the end of the room where a very large lift was. Setting her hand on the combination keypad made the doors open. 'After you.' She gestured in.

The men walked in immediately, while Mimi and Peach stayed outside giving Esmine suspicious looks. 'Are you saying you're from another dimension?' the royal asked her.

'That's exactly what I'm saying. Now get in, unless you want to throw away your only chance at your artefact.'

Mimi turned and looked at Peach who returned her worried glance. She remembered what Mario had been stressing; the world had little time left. What other choice did they have but this one? They walked in.

Esmine followed suit and pressed a button on the inside of the lift. The doors closed and they began a quick descent. Lights lined the walls, speeding past as they went deeper underground. 'The prison here is interesting,' the red-haired girl started to explain, her small smile still on her face. 'Only prisoners in Nautoville were here as punishment, Grambi knows for how long. Sometimes when there were particularly heinous or violent crimes those in charge decided it would be wise to try and break the criminals.'

'"Break" them...?' Mimi repeated softly.

'Break them,' Esmine repeated. 'They used the Heart Stone. The very essence of love's power. Exactly the kind of thing an evil, hardened criminal _wouldn't_ want to be exposed to.'

'Why?' Peach inquired. 'What could an object involving love possibly do to a person?'

'It showed them the thing everyone fears most: their heart, right down to the deepest, darkest parts. It showed their fears and their desires, their hopes and their dreams. Most of all though, it showed them the thing they loved the most. The thing they loved more than anything in the entire world.'

'That...doesn't sound too bad,' Mimi said.

'To most? No. But to people like those held here? They don't even know what they want most. They have no idea. To find out something like that speaks volumes about a person. More often than naught the revelation would send their minds reeling. They wouldn't believe what they saw. That was how they were broken.'

'We're using something like _that_ in the Purity Heart...?' Peach shuddered.

The lift stopped and Esmine pressed the button again. The door opened and lights turned on, revealing more cells, their insides covered in shadow. The doors were closed. They all walked out.

Luigi, who before had been staring intently at Esmine, was shivering. 'I...I don't like this place...' he muttered.

'S'not that scary...' Bowser countered, still looking at Esmine.

Only a short few moments of walking and the end of the hall was in sight. A lonely steel door separated the prison cell hallway from what lay beyond. 'This small underground jail has been out of service for a very long time. A VERY long time. Yet the Heart Stone has always remained.'

'...how has it not been...stolen then?' Mario blinked a few times and shook his head.

'Nobody has ever tried. Nobody has ever cared.'

She pressed a hand to the keypad and the door opened with a hiss. They all walked in. There was giant cage at the end of the large room, its contents covered by shadows.

'The Stone is in there,' Esmine said, excitement creeping into her voice. She walked over and opened the door. 'Go on, take it and let's get out of here. You can finally start making a difference.'

They all stood stock-still, staring at the gigantic confine. Mimi turned to Esmine suddenly. 'You've been saying too many things I don't like!' she exclaimed, her voice echoing off the walls. 'You've mentioned the Chaos Heart, you've been talking too much about this place's history, and how the heck do you even KNOW about this Heart Stone? We gave you the benefit of the doubt, mostly because there's nowhere else to go besides here, but now I want answers. Who are you, what does the Heart Stone do, and why are you helping us?'

There was a moment of tense silence. Slowly, Esmine's mouth curved into a wicked smile. 'Go on in,' she repeated, raising her hand. Tendrils of blackness were coming off of it. 'Collect your prize.'

Mimi was suddenly hit from the side by something huge and hard, throwing her into the cage along with everyone else. The wall of darkness disappeared and the door slammed shut. 'Esmine!' she screamed. 'Open the door!'

The girl snapped her fingers and the entire cage became surrounded by dark energy, humming with power. 'You're all idiots,' she said, laughing. 'You're all such STUPID idiots! Always trusting people, always hoping for the goodwill of others. I was shaky on this plan, but when Dimentio said it was going to work he wasn't joking.'

The males all seemed to be regaining their senses. 'We're...we're trapped!' Luigi suddenly yelped.

'How the...?' Mario gasped.

'I have a headache of severity...' Fawful moaned.

Mimi spun around; there was a pillar in the centre of the cage...but no Heart Stone. Nothing. 'You tricked us!' she yelled accusingly at Esmine.

'Way to state the obvious Mimi. I really can't understand how Dimentio could have fallen for someone so _dense_.'

The look on the green girl's face was horrifying. 'You little—'

'I'd watch your language girly,' the woman warned. 'Wouldn't want you shocking anyone.' She stretched. 'Weeelll...I'd better go now. I hope you all enjoy your stay in solitary confinement...because it'll be the last thing you ever do before the Void destroys everything.' She waved and the most infuriating, satisfied smile was on her face. 'Ciao~.' She stopped and turned around. 'Oh, and just to satisfy your curiosity, I know these things because the Chaos Heart allows me to see them. The Void has been around for all of time...and by extension, the Chaos Heart. All I have to do...is dig.' She walked out the door, which closed behind her.

'ESMINE!' Mimi screamed in fury. She ran at the cage door; the moment her hands closed around it a huge force knocked her back and sent a shock through her body.

'Mimi!' Peach cried. 'Are you okay?'

'Ungh...' Mimi got up. 'That...ugh! I can't believe it. Oh, wait, I can.'

Mario suddenly hopped up. 'We're...we're trapped!' he exclaimed.

'Nice of you to notice,' Mimi sighed.

'Ugh...' Mario groaned. 'I don't understand...'

'I am not liking the girl who is her,' Fawful huffed, shaking his head.

'RAAAAUGH!' Bowser roared, running at the door.

'I wouldn't do—' the green girl started before Bowser was hurled backwards.

Fawful walked up to it and put on his Headgear. 'Let's have the seeing...Headgear! Chomp!' The Headgear's powerful jaw closed on one of the bars. A bright spark of electricity flared from the Headgear and it immediately let go, flailing on Fawful's head before shutting off completely. 'Grr...' He grabbed the bars and shook them angrily. 'OPEN OPEN OPEN OPEN OPEN!' he shrieked.

'Hey!' Luigi exclaimed. 'You aren't hurt!'

Fawful paused and looked; where his hands were grasping the bars the dark energy was turning to mist and curling around his fingers. He closed his eyes and concentrated; there was a strange sucking sound and all the energy was absorbed into him. 'I...have...FURY!' he screamed. A blast of power exploded from his palms and blew the whole front of the cage apart.

Everyone stared at the smouldering rods on the ground. '...I coulda done that,' Bowser huffed, miffed.

Mimi grinned, full of determination. 'Let's go kick her butt.' Everyone nodded their approval. They ran across the room and the door opened.

'I knew it.'

They stopped. Standing across the hall was an androgynous humanoid, half white, half black, its milky eyes staring them down with a cold fierceness. Its arms were crossed and it tapped a finger on its arm rhythmically. 'You...' Mario said. 'You're Valex, aren't you?'

Dimentio's creation raised a brow. 'So, you remember. Ha, ha, ha.' Mimi heard Fawful make an irritated groan at the monotonous laugh. 'I knew you would not be held for long, yet she insisted that I leave.'

'Well you were right,' Luigi replied. 'And now we're gonna get the heck outta here, so get out of our way!'

'Such bold words for such a cowardly little man.' The cells at their sides shuddered and clanked. 'I stayed because I was to combat you here. The master has no need for futile distractions from his great goal.' Valex's eyes bore hard into Mimi's and she felt heat come to her cheeks.

'You can't win and you know it,' Mario said. 'You might as well stand aside.'

A humoured smile spread across its face. 'Most likely true,' he admitted. 'Yet not impossible.' He snapped his fingers and the cell doors all opened abruptly. 'Survive if you can.'

And then they all screamed as more black and white creatures burst out of the cells and ran at them with a bloodthirsty barbarity. Their growls and roars bounded off the walls and back into Mimi's ears as the hit the floor and thrust a Rubee upwards, impaling a small creature that had jumped at her. She got up and summoned one in each hand, bashing other ones as they drew near. She threw on at Valex who simply caught it in mid flight and threw it back. Mimi sidestepped and it killed another creature. She ran forward at the leader but was stopped by a blast to the side by another foe.

'Die!' she yelled, stabbing it through the head with another gem. The thing squelched as its head was impaled, flailing its arms as it ran around before dropping dead to the floor. 'These things are so—AH!'

She cried out as one latched onto her back and sunk its teeth into the back of her neck. She fell forward and banged her head against the wall, squirming on the ground. It felt like her energy was being taken from her, weakening her body. Suddenly it shrieked and exploded, the goo splashing onto her back. 'Do you have wellness?' Fawful asked, worried. He shot another creature as he righted her; his Headgear was still dysfunctional.

'Ow...y-yeah...'

There was a crash as Bowser slammed a large enemy into the wall and started punching its lights out. The Koopa then grabbed its shoulders, pushed it further against the wall, and finished it with a blast of fire. Luigi slid by and uppercutted one, his Thunderhand sending blue sparks down the foe's body. Mario jumped up and kicked one's head clean off before spinning around and whacking one with his Ultra Hammer.

'Ha-CHA!' Peach cried out, slamming into one. Pink hearts exploded out from the impact, making the thing fly across the room. She blocked one's attack with her parasol and then used it to counter, jumping up and finishing it with an old-fashioned stomp to the head.

More and more were piling in as the older ones began to dissolve. All the while Valex just stood there, his smile gone, replaced with a stony glare as his minions were being felled. 'Sheer numbers are meaningless...' he muttered.

'DUCK!' Fawful squawked as he put up his hand. Everyone ducked and covered their faces with their arms and hands, save for the creatures. Mimi felt the power rise up in the Bean and covered herself more tightly just as a gigantic energy blast covered the entire room. The creatures were vaporized and Mimi herself felt like she was in the middle of a fire.

It stopped. As she got up and tried to shake off the pain, she saw Valex pull himself up, supporting himself with the wall. He slumped and disappeared, but not before fixing Mimi with another murderous glare.

The resulting silence was deafening; the slight buzz of the overhead lights sounded louder than anything they had heard before, while in reality it should have been barely noticeable. They were all tense, waiting and ready for the next onslaught of creatures to come. They didn't.

'Are...are they all gone?' Luigi trembled.

'I...think so,' Mario replied wearily.

They all ran down the hall to the elevator shaft; the elevator itself was gone.

'Did they destroy it?' Mimi inquired.

She watched as Fawful peered up the shaft. 'No,' he answered her. 'They went the way of upwards.' A blast of heat enveloped them as a darkness-covered Fawful rocketed up the shaft. They heard a huge crash and the crunching of metal and glass, then the Bean dropped back down. 'The way is not having blockness anymore.' He grinned widely. 'We have going up.'

Fawful had to make several trips up and down the shaft carrying the people who couldn't fly or jump off the walls (which meant everyone other than Fawful and the Mario Bros.). Mimi didn't envy the poor boy when he had to lift Bowser all the way up the shaft before nearly collapsing afterwards. She waited patiently for him to recover and then walked forward as he landed on the floor for the last time.

He was gasping for breath. 'Huff...the Bowser has...heaviness...'

'I don't envy you, haha,' Mimi laughed.

'Psh...have come.'

'All right, just be ca—oh!' She cried out as Fawful picked her up with more strength than he ought to have. 'J-jeez Fawful!'

'Apologies.'

'Well no, I mean...you don't LOOK as strong as you're...uh, showing.'

He chuckled. 'It is the Chaos Heart.' The rockets on his Headgear started and they began their ascent.

'Not enough to lift Bowser without almost killing yourself though?' The green girl smirked.

'...noing, Fawful guesses not.'

After a few long moments of silence they reached the exit of the shaft and rejoined the rest of the heroes at the top floor.

There was a tremor from outside, as if something had exploded. They all faced the door with grim faces.

'Be careful guys,' Mario warned. 'Who knows what we're up against out there.'

Mimi felt a pit grow in her chest as she remembered the love struck faces of every male in the group. What sort of monster was Esmine?

They exited the building.

'Well well.' They turned around and looked to the top of the building where Esmine sat, smiling. 'I guess Valex was right when he said you were going to escape.' She shrugged. 'Can't say I'm not surprised.'

'So you're working for Dimentio,' Mimi jeered at her. 'He's brainwashed yet another person into helping him for his own goals.'

'Brainwashed? Hah! I'm doing this out of my own free will. I know exactly what he plans to do: make a perfect world. One free of strife.' Her gazed turned solemn. 'I intend to see his desire through.'

'He's a backstabbing traitor!' Bowser growled. 'Total scum!'

'He will have the turning on you when his plans have completion!' Fawful added.

Esmine closed her eyes. 'Do you really think so? Do you really think that he would kill those so devoted to his cause? Do you think that I have given him any reason to betray me in the end?'

'He doesn't _need_ a reason,' Peach said. 'He'll eliminate you when he doesn't need you anymore.'

'He's doing this for _US!_' the red-haired girl suddenly screamed. 'He's eliminating everything bad about the world! He's making it a better place! We're ALL making it a better place! Why would he cast me away? Why, when I understand him completely?' Her fists were clench. 'How can you say any of that without knowing what you're talking about?'

Mimi saw a look in her eyes that she knew well; she knew she often had it as well. 'You're...lost,' she told Esmine. 'You don't know him. Not really.'

'I DO!' she yelled angrily. 'I understand his goal beyond a shadow of a doubt! He'll eliminate anything that can cause hurt, and he'll destroy anyone who gets in his way! I'LL destroy anyone who gets in his way!'

Mimi sighed. 'You have no idea what Dimentio's like. You haven't seen...him.'

'And you have? What kind of idiocy is that?'

'Open your eyes!' Everyone was staring back and forth to Esmine and Mimi. 'He's unstable! How can you trust someone like that?'

'I trust him!' she shouted, a bit of doubt creeping into her voice. 'I trust him...because I have to. Because if I don't I don't know who I can trust.'

Mimi blinked. 'You're stopping us here, aren't you?'

Esmine sighed and closed her eyes, breathing deeply. Then she smiled. 'Nope. Not me.' She snapped her fingers and a portly pink figure appeared in a flash of darkness. Mimi heard Fawful snarl behind her. 'Ready for your moment, Midbus?'

'Muh muh muh!' the big laughed. 'Yes. I am ready.' He surveyed them all. 'I will crush. They will be crushed. I will crush them. Muh muh.'

_'Ahahahaha! Crush? Why not something a little more...violent?'_

'No...' Mimi breathed, clenching her fists. 'Stay away...'

Dimentio appeared, smiling broader than ever. 'And so I arrive, like a sudden windstorm at a kindergarten picnic!' He suddenly frowned. 'Hm...I believe I've used that one before.'

'What're you doing here?' Esmine said a little too forcefully.

'Ah...ahahaha. I've simply come to watch the crushing...and perhaps lend a helping snap of the fingers!' He snapped his fingers and pointed at Midbus. A dark beam shot out of the jester's finger and hit the piggish minion, enveloping him in darkness. 'Past experiences are excellent to draw on. Perhaps you will remember this particular trick.' He snapped his fingers again and Midbus began to grow.

Mario's, Luigi's, Bowser's, and Fawful's eyes all widened. 'Get back!' Mario yelled, and started to run. He was followed by Luigi, Peach, and Bowser. Mimi cried out as Fawful flew right at her and plucked her off the ground.

Mimi looked back and saw why they were so afraid: Midbus was still growing up to the size of the buildings. 'Ahahahahaha!' Dimentio laughed, sitting down on the pig's huge head. 'Now then, crush away! Ahahahahahahahahahahaha!'

Midbus took a few steps forward, making the ground quake with every footfall. He looked down to find Bowser quite far behind the ground. A smile spread across his face. 'Crush,' she said simply, and brought his foot down.

The crash made the three other heroes lose their balance. Mario jumped back up and looked at where the Koopa King used to be. 'B...Bowser!' he cried.

'Mamma mia!' Luigi exclaimed. 'That's crazy!'

Fawful suddenly stopped flying forward and hovered; Mimi clutched onto him as hard as she could, staring at the giant foot. 'Wait a second...what's that?'

Red, green, and blue...things were leaking out from underneath Midbus' foot; they glowed and pulsed, making crackling sounds. When Mimi turned her attention back to Fawful she found that he was grinning. 'It still has working,' he said.

'What does?' she asked him. She looked back; something was happening. Midbus' foot was being slowly forced upwards.

'Wh...what?' the minion exclaimed.

'Ah...I'd hoped this wouldn't happen...' Dimentio sighed.

'GgggggrrrrrrRRRRAAAAHHHH!' Bowser flung his arms skyward and sent Midbus toppling over to the ground. The Koopa was growing just as Midbus had; soon they were at an equal size. 'Bwa ha ha!' he laughed. 'Two can play at THAT game!' His voice boomed through the city and Mimi began to get nervous; they could cause a lot of damage.

Apparently other people thought so too; they were beginning to pile out of the city, some more calm than others.

'Stubborn Koopa!' Midbus growled. 'You will taste defeat!'

And with that Midbus charged at Bowser, the hard foot stomps sounding like the earth revolting against itself. Bowser braced himself and put out his hands; Midbus slammed his fists against Bowser's scaly palms and the Koopa snarled as he was pushed back into a building. The structure groaned against the blow yet the powerful supports managed to keep it standing.

'You...little...MORON!' Bowser bellowed and punched Midbus in the face. The giant minion roared and clutched his snout, a violent fire burning in his eyes. He grabbed Bowser's arm and flung him around, smashing him into another building; the windows shattered and metal grated.

'Ahahahahahaha!' Dimentio laughed out loud. 'Yes, yes, CRUSH HIM!' Even though his real eyes couldn't be seen, his masked ones got the bloodlust across nicely enough.

'M-Mario!' Peach cried. 'Nautoville's too compact! The city's going to be destroyed!'

The plumber gritted his teeth. 'There's only one thing we can do.'

'What, Bro?' Luigi demanded.

'FIGHT!' he yelled in response.


	34. Chapter 34: Demonesses

Chapter 34: Demonesses

Mimi

Before Mario could take a step a powerful hand grabbed him by the neck and hefted him up into the air. 'You shall fight me, then,' Valex grunted, tightening his grip. He threw Mario against a building and put his hand up into the air; a beam of darkness shot out of his hand and wove itself into a portal in the sky. In clumps of dozens Dimentio's creatures began to descend, some flying over them and some crashing to their feet on Nautoville's streets. 'This shall be a war of oppression!' Dimentio's second-hand declared. 'Leave no one alive! KILL EVERYONE!'

'Oh Grambi...' Mimi gasped. 'This is going to be tough...' A thought clicked. 'Wait a minute...Fawful, Valex just said...!'

Her sentence was cut off as the creatures began to attack not just the heroes on the ground...but the _civilians_ as well. They rushed the Toads, Koopas, Bob-Ombs, and other citizens of Nautoville and brutally attacked them. Screams erupted from the city like never before as the monsters clawed, scratched, bit, and dug their razor-sharp limbs into anything they could find. Mimi's eyes were wide and her throat was dry as she saw innocent men, women, and children running for their lives to no avail, and the creatures were still coming.

'This...this has...' Fawful couldn't find words.

'FAWFUL LOOK OUT!' the green girl screamed; about seven flying black-and-white creatures shrieked and flew at them, small batish things with knife-like wings. The Bean immediately cut the power on the Headgear's rockets and they fell, the creatures soaring giving chase. 'Fawful, let me go!' she demanded. 'I'll divide them!' Fawful complied and shoved Mimi away from him, bringing power to his rockets and taking evasive action. Mimi flew off in the opposite direction, making tricky manoeuvres of her own. Half of the bats soared after her while the other half remained tailing Fawful. She spun around to face them and threw a handful of sharp Rubees, skewering them and making them explode into goo. The victory wasn't for long though, as more began to tail her. She flew around buildings, making a few crash, and finished the rest with more Rubees.

She landed on a building, bent over with her hands gripping her knees. 'This is insane...' she gasped, wincing as a loud crash sounded; Bowser had attempted to punch Midbus who had dodged it, making the giant Koopa put his arm right through a skyscraper. When he couldn't pull it out, he flung it upwards, tearing the whole top of the building right off and crashing to the ground. Mimi's heart panged; she didn't want to imagine who died in that impact. Looking out she saw The Mario Bros. and Peach fighting Valex and his bloodthirsty subordinates while Fawful was busy with air battling. Dimentio was still perched on Midbus' head, gripping his horns and laughing all the while. Mimi set her jaw and clenched her fists, standing upright; he was her target. 'Dimentio...' she breathed. 'I...I WILL stop you!'

She took off into the skies towards Midbus' enormous head, avoiding the faceless minions that swerved in to intercept her. She was breathing quickly; Dimentio was going to be stopped, no matter what her feelings for him!

A powerful force hit Mimi in the side and sent her spinning out of control. The world flung itself into chaos, a mass of swirling things blocking out her vision. She cried out in surprise and fear and hastily drew up a 2D box, flipping herself upright and back onto solid ground. 'Trying to kill him are you? What a stupid notion!'

Mimi glared at the black-clad girl who touched ground before her, wearing a mix of smugness and irritation. 'Esmine,' she snarled. 'Get out of here.'

'Do you think you're doing me a _favour_, Mimi? Do you think you can somehow make things better for me if you can convince me that he's evil?' She crossed her arms and set her eyes on Mimi's. 'I _know_ he's evil. I _know_ he's killed men, women, and children all for enjoyment. I _know_ he's a killer, I _know_ he's a monster...but so am I.' Her eyes shone dangerously. 'I am also a murderer and a monster. I'm helping Dimentio destroy everything because I know he'll replace it all with a world without war and strife and murder. I belong in his castle. I belong with HIM!'

There was a fury and melancholy in her eyes that she couldn't disguise, and when she saw it Mimi knew there was more to Esmine than met the eye. 'You've lost someone before, haven't you? Someone close to you. They...' Mimi paused and bit her lip; there was something...familiar about Esmine. Everything was familiar; her mannerisms, her personality, her sins, and her past. 'Someone close...it was your brother. Your brother was...murdered.'

Esmine's eyes widened and she seemed to mentally recoil. 'How...what could you know? You're just a foolish, naïve...!'

'I'm right!' Mimi declared. 'You're doing this so that no one will ever have to die like him and feel such intense heartache like you.' The look on Esmine's face confirmed this. 'Allying with Dimentio won't help, he'll just make things worse!'

'SHUT UP!' the red-haired girl screamed, a pulse of dark energy making both girls' shudder. 'You don't know ANYTHING about me! We've never even MET before!'

Mimi just stared; never met? But she was so familiar...why did she feel like she knew Esmine from somewhere? Her words were slow and quiet. 'Dimentio will never love you...'

The shape-shifter realized that she had struck a chord she shouldn't have; Esmine's face transformed into an enraged snarl, wide eyed and absolutely livid. Her facial features seemed to change, becoming more demonic and fierce. She screamed an obscene word in Mimi's face. 'YOU IGNORANT _BITCH!_' she bellowed. 'I'LL TEAR YOUR FACE OFF!'

Mimi yelled in fright as Esmine flung out a now-clawed hand and blasted her with a dark attack; the green girl put a Rubee in front of her for defense; it shattered into pieces, sending Mimi careening through the air. She turned herself over in midair and threw Rubees at the demon, who just ran through them, ignoring the gashes they put in her body. Esmine took to the skies, slamming into Mimi with the force of an angry bull. The girl felt dark energy burning her skin; gritting her teeth she conjured another Rubee and slammed the blunt end against her enemy's forehead; she yelled and let go, spinning in the air from the blow. When she steadied she gripped her head.

'Hmph...that hurt.' Without another word she put out her hand; from each finger a dark coil shot out and latched onto Mimi. Flinging her arm upwards sent Mimi up into the air. With the shape-shifter still bound Esmine flew forward and threw her arm down; Mimi barely had time to brace herself before she crashed against the wall of a tall building, knocking the wind out of her. She gasped hoarsely before she was whipped in the other direction, hitting a lamppost followed by the ground then thrown back up into the air. She fell and hit the ground hard.

She struggled to her feet, taking out an Ultra Shroom that Mario had given her and eating it desperately; she instantly felt her strength returning and her bodily wounds healing. 'You wanna get ugly then? Fine. Let's get ugly.' She jumped up into the air and a dozen Rubees appeared around her; they spun around her body and shot at Esmine, one after the other, at the speed of arrows. Her enemy put up a shield of darkness but not quick enough; one Rubee flew through and hit her in the chest, embedding itself in her. She screamed and staggered, her shield dissipating along with Mimi's Rubees. Before she had a chance to recover Mimi dimension-flipped behind her and hit her in the back of the head with another, bigger gem and then hopped up and stomped on her head platformer-style. Esmine snarled and grabbed Mimi's pigtails before she touched ground, yanking her up and holding her up to meet her eyes.

'You're _dead_,' she hissed.

'You wish,' Mimi countered. Her next dimension-flip took Esmine with her, spinning them both so intensely that even Mimi felt disoriented. They appeared back in the dimension on top of a building, with Esmine reeling and clutching her head with both hands. Mimi ran and flung two blunt Rubees, one hitting her in the shoulder and the other hitting the Rubee still protruding from her chest. The demonic girl screamed and ripped the Rubee out, darkness pouring out of her chest and wrapping around her wound; Mimi watched as the cracked bones and torn muscles began repairing themselves, the skin growing and reappearing. The hole was gone within about twenty seconds.

'You'll never kill me,' Esmine said, gasping. 'Not while I have the Chaos Heart.'

'I don't _want_ to kill you!' Mimi shot. She smiled wickedly. 'I'll just knock that pretty face of yours around until you want me to stop.'

'And I'll mutilate _yours_ beyond recognition!' Esmine countered furiously.

Mimi jumped backwards and flew off before the blast of dark energy hit her, hearing the whole top of the building explode and cave in to the uppermost floor. The green girl led her foe on an air chase, swerving around flying creatures and soaring between buildings. She turned abruptly and threw a solid clump of Rubees at the glass window of a building; it shattered, the glass breaking apart with a magnificent smash. The shards tinkled as they hit the floor and Mimi flew into the building.

It was a department store; clothes and items of different effects lined shelves, the latest fashions for many of the different Mushroom Kingdom species on display.

She flipped into the Other Dimension and watched as Esmine's semi-transparent projection flew into the store, looking around for her. 'I know you're in here,' she said, her voice calmer than before. Her demonic facial features had begun to recede as her anger ebbed, though Mimi could still tell she wasn't fully human.

Mimi flipped back into the regular dimension. 'I'm here,' she replied.

Esmine spun around and Mimi was forced to dodge a black orb, heat blasting her face as it exploded. 'Stop fighting,' Esmine demanded. 'You'll never win.'

Mimi couldn't help but smile. She tilted her head to the side, feeling and hearing her neck crack under the strain. 'I could say that to you too, but which one of us is right?' She tilted it a little further, feeling her neck bones crack and break, yet she felt no pain. She tilted her head back the other way and then quickly brought it back the other way; her eyes widened as the last of her bones snapped apart with a sickening pop. She grinned widely. 'Ehehehehe...' Her head spun around several times in the other direction. 'Who's right who's right who's right!' she cried, madness creeping into her voice as she transformed. Esmine looked disgusted. Her head swung a few times and stopped upside-down. A strange chime sounded; she gave an _urk!_ as her neck split open and six spidery legs shot out, one of them piercing one of her pigtails and ripping it out of her skull. Her head puffed up and her eyes disappeared, her legs planting themselves on the ground. They lifted her small body up off the floor; everything below her head hung limply on the few threads of skin and muscle left of her neck.

_'Tee hee hee!'_ she giggled, her voice distorted like a monster out of the Underwhere. _'Who's gonna win?'_ Mimi looked at Esmine on the ground, her vision pulsating; she seemed so small. As she teetered on her six legs, she could feel the darkness in her heart coming out; her sanity remained, but a strange sadistic edge had crept into her voice.

'What the heck are you?' the red-haired girl demanded.

Mimi attempted a shrug, but that was somewhat difficult. _'I dunno.'_ She replied honestly. She grinned; her teeth were pointed. _'Let's play.'_

Mimi put her head up and felt a Rubee make its way up her throat; she spat it out with the force of a Bill Blaster, the ruby-coloured gem barely missing its target and ripping apart an expensive looking dress.

_'Aw!'_ Mimi sighed. _'That dress was so cute! Tee hee!' _She felt like she had when working for Count Bleck: not nice at all.

Esmine shot a blast of darkness at her; Mimi raised up her head and the blast went through her legs, exploding at the other end of the room and blasting a hole in the wall. She fired a few more blasts which were of no effect, then tried using the coils to grab her. When they latched onto Mimi's head and she pulled, her legs kept the shape-shifter firmly attached to the ground. She watched the world spin as her head spun around, flinging Esmine around the room and breaking shelves and delicate ornaments. She was forced to let go of the dark coils, flinging herself across the room and into a wall. The woman groaned in pain.

_'Isn't this fun? You look so hurt! Hee hee hee! Not dead though, that wouldn't be good.'_

Esmine glared at her. 'Try this then.' She threw more blasts at the floor at Mimi's feet. Three seconds passed and then black crystals shot out of the ground. Mimi shrieked and teetered, crying out in pain as one of them went through her head. A Rubee burst out of her head and impaled the crystal, making both gems shatter. A shudder went through her and she groaned as one of her legs came off with a squelch; the resulting hole filled up thanks to her shape-shifting abilities. 'E...ew,' Esmine said, suddenly sick to her stomach. 'How could you come up with a form like THIS?'

_'Hee hee! I didn't come up with it. It's just me.'_

'You're actually...?' The shock in the demon's voice was evident.

Mimi recalled Esmine's enraged, demonic face. _'Hey, you're not much prettier yourself.'_

Esmine then replicated said face as well as was possible without her features changing. 'How dare you?'

She wrapped herself in dark energy and flew at Mimi, using herself as a powerful projectile. The spider girl ducked and laughed, but her laughter turned to a scream as tendrils of darkness grabbed onto her head as Esmine passed her. She fell backwards and her head crashed to the ground, another leg splitting off. Two of her legs suddenly straightened and stuck into the ceiling, lifting her head up and letting the other two legs do the same thing to the floor. Rubees shot out of her head, sticking out like spikes. Her head spun around like a wheel and she slid quickly along the wall, her head moving up and down her legs. Esmine managed to avoid the first one but was hit from behind as Mimi changed direction, making a long gouge down her back. Mimi stopped moving and the Rubees shot out of her head, turning a shelf to splinters and putting holes in walls. Her enemy knelt on the ground, her back being healed by the Chaos Heart's energy. Mimi's legs were released from the walls and planted back firmly on the ground.

Esmine was gasping; even though the Chaos Heart's energy could heal her wounds, it couldn't get rid of her exhaustion. 'You...you're...' she huffed, blinking quickly.

_'I'd say you aren't used to fighting so hard. Tee hee hee!'_

'Stop LAUGHING!' the woman yelled, hitting Mimi with a blast of darkness. The spider girl lurched backwards, wailing as another leg was torn off her head, leaving her with three. She wobbled awkwardly; missing half of her legs made it difficult to stand up. Esmine jumped up and shot three small blasts of darkness which spun in midair; Mimi shot a Rubee which hit one and fell to destroy the second, but the third hit her head. Her vision spun and she could barely see as her enemy jumped up and drove her feet into her face, her inflated skin buckling from the blow. A tremor racked her body and then she was suddenly standing on two legs. The lack of balance was driving Mimi crazy.

Esmine landed behind her. 'H-hah!' she cried, her breathing laboured.

_'Grr...' _The voice distortion made her irritated growl sound like a lion's. _'Time to quit playing around.'_

Mimi felt for all her energy and focussed it on the floor; a huge wave of Rubees exploded out; Esmine's eyes widened in surprise and she threw another blast, but all that succeeded in was creating a small dent in the huge mass of stones. She screamed as the wall of gems came down upon her.

As the Rubees disappeared, Mimi surveyed the extent of her attack. Esmine was battered and beaten, the Chaos Heart's energy swirling around her and sealing up her wounds. The spider girl sighed and transformed back to normal in a poof of pixelated smoke. 'I told you I was going to win.' With her body back to her preferred form, her abnormal mannerisms had disappeared. 'But wow...you were tougher than you looked.'

Esmine was heaving herself up but was too weak to stand upright. She collapsed and lay on the ground, hands gripping the floor. 'M-must...w-win...' she choked. 'N-ngh...'

Mimi ran up and knelt beside her. 'Did I hurt you too much?'

The woman grunted and glared at her. 'I h-hate you...'

The shape-shifter sighed. 'There's just no reasoning with you.' She looked over Esmine curiously. 'I feel like I've met you before...'

'I've never...met you...ever.'

'What was your brother like?'

Grief took over Esmine's face. 'D-don't make me think of him...' she breathed.

'This...' Mimi was racking her memory as hard as she could; she could remember certain things...vague, cloudy shadows of memories that were hers in another life. 'This could be important. You _have_ to tell me!'

'He...' She sighed. 'He was smart beyond his years and hated dealing with people who couldn't understand him. He was naturally curious...which led to his death. He loved his family and me...but hated me at the same time. He called me a monster on too many occasions...all because of my instincts. Sometimes I'd stay inside the house...just sitting. He had a way with words and unbelievable reasoning. He had a huge heart...but it was hard to see sometimes.' Tears were forming in her eyes. '...why the Underwhere am I telling you this?'

'Sometimes you just need to tell someone, no matter who it is listening.' Mimi heard crashes from outside, the tremors caused by Bowser and Midbus' gigantic brawl. They were close; she heard Bowser roar and could feel heat from his fire. 'Where'd you live?'

'A small village...' the demon muttered. 'It was modest, not advanced at all compared to...this place. I guess we were a young dimension...'

'Wooden houses?' Mimi asked.

'Yeah...'

'...was the village's flag white with a golden angel on it?'

'Yeah, it was. They worshiped angels, which is why I was such a problem to my family.' She looked up at Mimi inquisitively. 'How do you know all this?'

'Esmine...did you know a girl who looks a lot like me bodily?' Mimi removed her hairbands, letting her hair go free. 'Even in hair, maybe voice?'

The red-haired girl frowned. 'I...that was so long ago. It was...'

'Fifteen hundred years?' the green girl guessed.

'...that's right.'

'Remember,' Mimi told Esmine. 'A girl around thirteen or fourteen, a human...'

The demon looked down. 'A human girl...' She looked back up. 'Yeah...I remember...you had white hair...same length. You...' She looked in Mimi's eyes. 'Your eyes haven't changed at all...' She shook her head. 'Wait, no, she's dead...she was killed.'

'By the same one who killed your brother, right?'

Esmine heaved herself up and Mimi followed suit, steadying the lolita as she stumbled. 'Yes...the same murderer. The same day...the whole village was destroyed...'

'Burned...' Mimi muttered, sadness making its way into her voice.

'Who are you...? How do you know me...?'

Mimi's eyes met Esmine's and the two stared. The two ruby-eyed girls shared a connection, Mimi knew. They were both creatures of death who struggled in everyday life...both wanted or had wanted to destroy all worlds due to past experiences...both had lost loved ones. Finally...there was one thing they shared over everything else. 'Esmine...the truth is...'

Mimi couldn't finish; she was interrupted by a huge crash. The entire building shook and groaned. A huge, pink fist punched through the building and the floor above them was wrecked as easily as cardboard. 'I-it's Midbus!' Esmine screamed.

Another crash and a huge spike stabbed into the skyscraper. 'Bowser...!' Mimi gasped.

The building couldn't take much more; Bowser was slammed into the side again and again and the girls felt the building tip. They heard Bowser's agonized roars of pain and Midbus' battle cries as the Koopa was pounded again and again. Worst of all though, they felt and heard the building losing its supports. 'M-Mimi...!' Esmine said fearfully.

Bowser was thrown against the building again and it finally gave in; the two girls felt the building rumble underneath them, more powerful than an earthquake. It tipped, the floor at a diagonal angle. They heard metal groan and pipes hiss, grinding and popping as the bottom of the building began to fall over. The diagonal angle of the building turned nearly vertical; the two slid down the floor as gravity forced them down and the weightless sensation and panic of freefalling took them over.

'Flip us oooouuuttt!' Esmine screamed.

Mimi grabbed onto the girl and drew up a 2D box; they spun around just as the building hit the ground and Bowser's enormous body completely crushed the room they had been in, just in time to hear the roar of the skyscraper hitting the ground.

The two of them wound up on another building, far enough away from the colossal battle to be safe. Esmine collapsed on the ground, exhausted. Mimi ventured up to the edge of the building to see what the battle had done to the city.

It was horrible; huge holes dotted the streets, small buildings had been completely destroyed, and objects such as lampposts and mailboxes were bent and flattened. The only tall building that had fallen over was the one the girls had just left; it lay in a crumpled heap in the middle of the metropolis, glass windows shattered, the metal dented and slashed. Even worse was the people; Nautoville's citizen's were still being slaughtered by Dimentio's faceless mooks, their bodies littering the streets, some mutilated enough that Mimi wasn't sure which species they were. Men, women, children, the creatures stopped at no one. Mario, Luigi, and Peach were still holding their own against the never-ending onslaught of monsters, though from this distance Mimi couldn't tell how well they were fairing. She looked over the skyline and found Fawful still flying around blasting the airborne foes; one latched onto his back and he fell, spiralling, towards the ground. He fired his blaster in a crazed frenzy and narrowly dodged some buildings before crashing into the balcony of a hotel and falling to the floor. She could see the dark energy healing his wounds as his Headgear ripped the thing off his back and ate it, spitting it out in a gooey mess.

'Esmine...' Mimi breathed. 'Come look.'

The girl got up slowly and walked over; she was having less difficulty moving than before. 'What about it?' she asked, as if she saw sights like this daily.

'People are dying!' Mimi exclaimed angrily. 'And you caused part of it!'

'They'll get more time to live in the aftergame,' she replied. 'Death will only prolong their ultimate demise.'

'How can you be like this?' Mimi demanded. 'Don't you have any feelings? Don't you have a heart?'

Esmine avoided her eyes. 'We still have hearts...' she muttered under her breath. 'We can...I can still love...'

'There are children down there being murdered by Dimentio's sick minions just like your brother,' she told the demon. 'You've been causing so much pain...for what? How can this be worth it?'

'A perfect world will—' she started.

'Don't you _dare_ start!' Mimi spat, gripping the other girl's shoulders. 'How can a new world, even if it IS perfect in every way, justify these means? These people are going to not only die, but get _erased from existence!_ Your own _brother,_ who, by the way, is probably in the Overthere at this very moment, is going to be completely obliterated!' Esmine started and bit one of her nails. 'That's right Esmine...' Mimi said. 'Your brother may have been killed, but he still has an aftergame! He'll be living as a Nimbi in the Overthere, and you're going to help Dimentio wipe him off the face of every world there is. Is that what you want?'

Esmine was conflicted, Mimi could see. She knew the woman wanted a world where no one could get hurt or killed, yet if she accomplished this she would never see her brother again. On the other hand...Mimi could see something more than simple loyalty to Dimentio in her words and eyes; she felt the same things toward him.

A crash in the distance brought her back to reality. She turned around and laid her eyes on Dimentio, who was still sitting on Midbus' head, aiding the minion in his battle with Bowser by firing dimensional attacks in his mouth, nose and eyes. Bowser was slowing faster than Midbus; at this rate he'd lose.

'I need to go,' Mimi said. 'Dimentio needs to be stopped.'

'H-hey!' Esmine yelled. 'You're going nowhere—augh...!' She stumbled and Mimi caught her again. 'Just...stay here.' Esmine didn't need to get caught up in this, none of Dimentio's minions did. 'I'll come back for you later.'

'No, get back here!'

Mimi turned around and took off towards Midbus.


	35. Chapter 35: Truth

Chapter 35: Truth

Mimi

The wind buffeted Mimi's hair and she realized that she had left her hairbands back on the building.

_No use going back for them now,_ Mimi thought to herself.

Bowser had gotten back up and was fighting Midbus once again, though Mimi could easily tell he was hurt. Midbus had taken quite a beating too, however, which meant that if Mimi could get Dimentio off the minion's head he might just win after all.

Something very large slammed into Mimi from behind and she fell, rolling as she hit the ground. When she pulled herself up she turned to face her assailant, a Rubee in each hand.

'Time to die,' Valex said as he hit the ground feet-first. He took a step forward and suddenly, in a barely-discernable shimmer, he was in front of her and bringing his fist across her face.

Mimi's world spun as his fist connected with her cheek, sending her spiralling through the air and slamming face-first against the hard floor, her Rubees disappearing. She gasped as he grabbed the back of her dress' neck and picked her up. Her entire world shimmered for a second and the next moment she was smashed against a building. Another shimmer and she was in midair; Valex grabbed her by the hair and flung her towards the city; she hit a flagpole on the way down before her impact with the street.

She moaned in pain, sure she had a few broken bones at least. The air shimmered in front of her and Valex appeared and grabbed her by the throat. 'You think you will destroy my master?' he hissed. 'You are sorely mistaken.' He squeezed tighter. 'You think you will distract him with your charms?'

'I d-don't know what you're...t-talking about,' she choked.

'Don't be imprudent, girl,' he said. For a being without emotions, he seemed angrier than one might think. 'The master never forgets you, never, stops, thinking about you. You occupy every aspect of his mind, filling him with longing for the emotion called…love.' He squeezed again. 'The emotion he calls worthless. You are making him unhappy and distracting him from his goal, which further makes him unhappy.' All Mimi could manage was a hoarse cough. 'And now you wish to kill him? No. You will die here, and your body will be fed to my army of emotionless Inverses.

'I-Inverses...?'

'The creatures under my command, of course. Goodbye.'

Mimi rammed a Rubee through his abdomen and he dropped her as thick, black guck spurted out of the wound. She lay on the ground, groaning in agony, reaching for a Mushroom.

Valex plucked it out of her hand and crushed it, jelly-like red liquid spewing out over his hand. 'Impertinent girl,' he grunted, pulling the Rubee from his body; the hole in his chest sealed up within seconds. 'Die.'

He started and lurched suddenly and was lifted right of the ground, Fawful's Headgear's jaw buried deep within his back. 'I have FURY!' Fawful beamed, grinning widely. An energy blast from his Headgear threw Valex up in the air. Fawful ran up and grabbed a Golden Shroom. 'Have eat,' he told her.

Mimi gratefully chomped it down and immediately knew this was special; sweet, spicy, bitter, sour, rich, and other flavours she couldn't place filled the golden liquid to the brim, the Mushroom's juice soothing and calming. She swallowed and sighed, her bones mending and her scars healing. Fawful lifted her up and put her back on her feet. 'Whoa...that's some Mushroom.'

'It has incredible rarity. Do you have wellness?'

'Yeah, now.'

'I believe you are forgetting your enemy, heroes.' The two turned to face Valex, combat ready. 'Your foolish attempts will be stopped.' He clenched his fists and dark fire engulfed them. 'Master Dimentio bestowed a glorious power upon me in my creation. You have no chance of victory.'

'We will have seeing!' the Bean spat. 'I am Lord Fawful, I have the power of great intelligence!' His Headgear glared menacingly, its maw glowing with energy. 'I have the energy of the Chaos Heart!'

Mimi spawned a Rubee per hand again. 'I can manipulate my shape,' she declared. 'I can be anything you love or fear!'

'Ha, ha, ha, ha!' the creature laughed in monotone. Mimi swore he did it simply because Dimentio did. 'I am Valex, the original Inverse! I hold the greatest ability, bestowed by Master Dimentio himself! Feel the power of one who can bend dimensions to his will!'

Mimi blinked and Valex had Fawful on the ground, gripping his Headgear's mouth and hurling him up into the air. Mimi threw her Rubees at her enemy who disappeared again and kicked her in the chest. Mimi managed to steady herself in midair and throw a few more Rubees which was unfortunately a futile attack; Valex bent the dimensions again and sent the shape-shifter flying against a building with a pulse of dark power.

Mimi flew up into the air and shot four gems at Valex, then made Rubees appear all around her; there was a strangled gasp from Valex as he appeared in front of her right as they did, one Rubee going through his stomach. Mimi put her fist back and punched the thing right between the eyes. There was a huge _crack!_ as it connected; Mimi's whole arm was encased in red crystal. 'Whoa,' the girl said, surprised. It disappeared. She remembered Esmine's display of dark power; all she had done was experiment with it. 'Guess I should too!' Mimi flipped dimensions and appeared in front of Valex, throwing a large Rubee. He disappeared and Mimi made the Rubee do the same. Both of them reappeared behind her; Mimi willed the Rubee to shatter, the force of the magical gem sending a wave of pain through her enemy. She flipped again. 'I'm getting the hang of it already!' She grinned.

She waited a little too long; Valex appeared again and gripped her shoulders, an electrifying burst of energy surging through her. She spasmed and fell; before she could hit the ground, however, Fawful caught her. 'Do you have okayness?' he asked.

'Y-yeah,' she answered, still feeling the shock. She flipped beside him. 'Let's take him down.'

Fawful flew at him directly, his Headgear letting loose a volley of energy shots. Valex disappeared and Fawful abruptly turned the rockets up, giving himself a boost. The Inverse flung out a hand engulfed in dark flames only to grasp air. Mimi took advantage of Valex's midair stumble and impaled him with a Rubee on each side. Fawful then grabbed his head with the Headgear and crunched, whipping him along the ground.

Valex got up, his face reforming. 'Pests!' he snapped. 'You're making me angry!' The words were hollow; Dimentio's creation couldn't feel emotion, but he could pretend. He stomped on the ground and a pillar of black stone exploded from the ground and came upon Fawful. The scientist destroyed it with a wave of the Chaos Heart's energy. Mimi flipped with up to Valex and blocked the attack he followed with using a shield made of a huge Rubee. It cracked from the blow and Mimi flung it forward, knocking Valex over. As he hit the ground another pillar burst out of the ground and collided with Mimi's stomach. She reeled and rolled, getting up dizzily. A brief shimmer was all that alerted the shape-shifter to Valex's next move. She ducked and socked the creature in the knee, bringing him down on them; Valex really was as close to a human as Dimentio could get.

Fawful waved his hands and a dozen dark portals appeared around Mimi and Valex, then around Fawful as well. Valex jumped up and slashed out at Mimi with dark claws, narrowly missing her and dodging the Rubee aimed at his face. Suddenly, a dark orb shot out of one of the portals and got the minion in the back. Fawful fired an orb in a different portal and it came out of one to Valex's side, who dodged the attack. The orb went through a portal on the other side and came out Fawful's end, hitting him in the chest.

'Gak! Fink-rat!' he snarled. He shot one in the uppermost portal and the orb came out of the returning one right behind Mimi, who nearly got hit yet was able to avoid it, making it hit Valex. She needed to know which portal connected with which...

Her foe snapped his fingers and a black explosion boomed before Mimi, flinging her backwards into one of the portals; a shock went through her body. 'Ah!' she cried, jumping forward. She gave Valex a disapproving look. 'You're just copying Dimentio,' she accused him.

'Hmph,' was Valex's only response. He shot a ball of darkness at her, which bounced right off one of the portals and hit Mimi in the head. Fawful fired two orbs; one in the top and one in the far left. Mimi noted where they came out after she had been hit by one. Two more orbs were fired; Mimi ran through the portals' relations in her head and ducked accordingly. She had been right to do so; had she not the orbs would have struck her. Instead, Valex was hit by the attacks. A powerful orb shot through one of the portals; Mimi ducked just in time, seeing the Inverse strafe to the left and the orb fly through another portal. Fawful flew up briefly, the orb going through another portal and coming out Mimi's end. Three fighters dodged and ducked and weaved and avoided the orb, the battle becoming a tiring display of agility and reaction time. Mimi dodged the orb again and whipped a Rubee at Valex, causing him to stumble and get hit.

'Mimi!' Fawful warned. 'Have flip!'

She didn't hesitate; she flipped out away from the portals and watched as the little genius fired an orb in every portal. Valex was hit from every direction, a roar of pain drowned out by an energy burst.

Mimi collapsed on the ground, panting. 'I...I can't take this anymore.'

'You are wanting to make Dimentio taste defeat?' Mimi swallowed and nodded gingerly. 'Then I shall have fight!'

'Alone? Can you take him?'

Fawful grinned and extended a helping hand. 'Do you have knowledge of who you are talking to?'

Mimi smiled and took the offered help up. 'Haha...I forgot.'

Valex got up; various burns and holes covered his body and he was panting. 'Your reputation as the thorns in Master's side is not refuted. However...' He drew himself up to his full height again and balled his fists. 'Those thorns must be plucked out.'

Fawful stepped in front of Mimi. 'Have flee,' he told her. 'I will have battle!'

'You overestimate your abilities, boy,' their enemy spat. 'You are not as powerful as you think.'

The Bean clenched his fist and dark fire appeared, hissing. 'Go!' he yelled. 'I have fury!'

Mimi turned and flew away, limbs flailing as she was send soaring uncontrollably from a massive blast made from two dark forces colliding; Fawful was getting too comfortable with the Chaos Heart's powers.

Mimi set her sights on her target; Dimentio. As she neared Bowser's and Midbus' colossal melee, she could feel the ground shake. Buildings lay on the ground; more skyscrapers had fallen and people had been crushed underfoot. To instigate a battle in the middle of a huge, compact city...Dimentio really knew no limits to his evil.

She flew up in the air, hidden by Bowser's humungous form. No use being seen quite yet. She hid behind one of his horns, creeping up and holding on as tightly as she could. Peeking out she could see the jester perched up on top of Midbus; he stared Bowser down, a bemused look on his face. Mimi could tell why; Bowser had taken a beating, yet he refused to give up. She took out an Ultra Shroom and dropped it into Bowser's mouth as he finished delivering a blast of fiery breath; she didn't know how much it would do for him when he was so huge, but it was worth a shot.

Mimi waved her hand and conjured up a Rubee behind Dimentio's head. She aimed it carefully, pointing it straight at him. She steadied it as Midbus moved. A little more…just wait a little more...

She let fly and it hit Dimentio on the back of the head. He winced and spun around and Mimi took her chance; she flew out from cover and slammed into her target at full speed, sending the two of them tumbling towards the ground grappling for freedom. They smacked onto the street and Mimi scrambled up, a Rubee already in her hand.

Dimentio lay on the ground, unmoving. Mimi frowned; there was no way he had been knocked unconscious. As she listened, she could hear it; a low, muffled laughter. 'Hahaha...ahahahaha...well done, Mimi.' The magician stood up, brushing the dirt off his poncho and pants. 'You're getting strategic with your attacks. That's a side I've never seen of you.'

'I'm taking you down here!' she declared, pointing her sharp gem at him threateningly.

'AHAHAHA!' Dimentio laughed hysterically. 'What a pathetically useless declaration! Have you not said something of the sort at every one of our meetings? Have you not tried and tried, yet failed every time? Have you not suffered crushing losses during your encounters with me? Have you forgotten O'Chunks? Timpani? Blumiere? If they could not kill me, then how can you?'

'I will because I have to!' Mimi answered fiercely. 'It has to be me!'

'Why ever so?' He gave her a condescending look. 'It is because of our history together? Is it because you and I were once family, living under the same roof? Could it be because the ones I have killed are all the family you had left, and that you would avenge their horrific deaths by ending the game of the one who saw their demise? Or...is it because you know you still _love_ me, and that in killing me yourself you will atone for what you see as a wrongful feeling in your heart?'

'You're bad, I'm good, who cares why I do it?' Mimi shot, a pit growing in her chest; he had hit the nail on the head.

'Perhaps that simple-minded display of morals is for the best. Then again, how could you truly know what is right?' Mimi kept her expression locked; she hadn't gone this far by questioning her morals, and she wouldn't start now. 'Well now, this should be interesting. A battle between former lovers! Hehe…ahahahaha!' He laughed, an edge of self-mocking to his tone. 'It is time to wipe your distracting heart off the face of life itself!'

Mimi threw her Rubee at the same time Dimentio shot a block of dimensional magic at her; the two projectiles collided, the magic exploding with a _BOINK!_ and the Rubee shattering into shards. Dimentio took to the skies, shooting more magic at her. Mimi ducked and dodged, knocking one back at him with a Rubee shield. He stumbled in midair and teleported.

_'Your newfound resolve...can it pierce my deceptions?'_ he asked, his voice reverberating. Multiple shots came from nowhere, knocking Mimi around like a pinball machine. She set her jaw and flipped into the Other Dimension, not surprised when she found the jester's solid form amongst all the silhouettes. 'Perhaps yes,' he chuckled.

Mimi ran underneath him and threw a Rubee up; Dimentio moved forward to dodge but the shape-shifter had other plans, jumping up and throwing more at his new position. Several connected, the hard stones making painful sounds as they connected with flesh and bone. The magician made an _unk!_ sound and hit the ground, wobbling as he levitated himself back into the air. 'You'll have to do better than that!' she shot. 'You're going easy on me!'

'What a shame! The excitement of toying with you is no fun if you know it is so.' He snapped his fingers, a dark light glowing on his index finger. 'Time to speed things up a bit! Ahahahaha!' He pointed at her and the light shot out, flashing as it hit her. Time seemed to quicken, everything moving at twice the speed of normal. 'Or, for me, slow things down!' He warped behind her and hit her with a block of magic. Mimi yelled as it hit her back, a burning pain stinging her. In an instant Dimentio was in front of her. He flicked her in the forehead for fun, then zoomed away, shooting another insanely quick attack. The girl yelled as she was hit again, this time with a more powerful attack. She gritted her teeth and threw a Rubee, but Dimentio was moving too fast for her to hit. 'You're too slow, Mimikins!' he cackled.

'Shut up!' she shouted, encasing her arms in crystal. She ran and jumped up, bringing her fists down upon him. He dodged to the left, grinning still.

'My, that's a new trick,' he noted delightedly. 'You're full of surprises today! Whoops, ahaha!' he added as Mimi tried to hit him again. He shot another projectile and the shape-shifter swung her arms blindly, a tremor shaking her body as her arms smacked the attack back. Dimentio's eyes widened for a fleeting moment as it struck him in the gut, time suddenly slowing back down to its normal pace.

'Hah!' Mimi laughed. 'Got you!'

'You celebrate far too soon, my dear,' the jester said. 'I have some more tricks up my sleeve!' He disappeared with a _ping!_ and, a few seconds later, three Dimentios appeared. 'Which is me? Can you see through my tricks, Mimi?'

'Seen it before,' she answered, feigning boredom.

'Then by all means, let' begin the next act! Ahahahahaha!' All the jesters laughed.

Mimi frowned; why not try something new? She focussed her energy on two Rubees and made them appear in her hands. 'Yeah. Let's.' She through them up into the air and they disappeared in a poof of pixelated purple smoke. When it disappeared, two more of her landed on the ground.

One of the magician's brow rose. '_Very_ impressive, using your shape-shifting powers like _that_.'

One of the Mimi's flung a Rubee at the Dimentio that spoke; it bounced off his head and sent him spinning in the air, the illusions disappearing. 'Too obvious!' she said, then dodged a shot from the jester.

Dimentio disappeared and his illusions were back. 'Did I not mention? The show's killing off your character!' they all mocked.

The Mimis flew off into the air, the Dimentios slow behind. One of them fired three blocks of magic at one of the girls, who dodged them and shot a Rubee back. The jester dodged and disappeared, reappearing behind one of the Mimi's. He snapped his fingers and sent the girl spiralling with a magical explosion. Another Mimi flipped out and shot a cluster of gems at the offensive magician; it was a fake, as they flew right through it.

The Mimis regrouped. 'Don't shoot at that one!' one of them said.

'Okay, there's two more,' another one added.

'Holding a conversation with yourself?' the three Dimentios asked rhetorically. 'You know that's one of the symptoms of dementia.'

'You're one to talk!' the last shape-shifter spat.

All six of them disappeared in their own fashion. One of each flipped out into the Other Dimension, staging a battle amongst the transparent projections. The other four waged their battle in the regular space, making sure to dodge the shots that appeared from nowhere. One Mimi made Rubees appear and circle her body, using them as melee weapons when her foe came too close. One of the Dimentios shot a powerful magical attack at her; she put all of them in front of her, wincing as they all shattered upon impact. Her enemy warped behind her and snapped his fingers, an explosion fiery explosion burning her skin. Snap after snap the flaming booms came, until she couldn't take it any longer; Mimi exploded into shining red shards.

'Ah...pity,' the magicians sighed. 'I thought it was the real one.'

'Nope!' The other Mimi in the regular dimension encased herself in a giant Rubee and came at the jester like a glittering cannonball. She flew right through him, the second false Dimentio revealed.

'So,' the Mimi in the Other Dimension said. 'You're the real one.' She ducked under the incoming projectile and whipped a Rubee at the real Dimentio, who dodged it with a twirl in midair. Mimi winced as her other clone shattered into a million pieces. The other two Dimentios flipped into the Other Dimension and they all let loose a flurry of shots; though difficult, Mimi dodged them all, flying right through the illusions and crashing into the real one, bringing both of them to the ground and the clones disappear.

They both flipped back into the regular dimension. _That dimension...feels so weird,_ Mimi thought to herself.

A sound brought her back into sharp alert; a repetitive tapping. Dimentio was smiling widely as usual, clapping his hands. 'Bravo!' he said, a surprising cheerfulness in his voice. 'Bravo! I must say Mimi, you have surprised me greatly. To think only a short time has passed since my demise, yet your abilities have increased by enough to match mine in combat!' He put his arms to his sides. 'Could it be that your new allies have given you strength? That your new, righteous cause has filled you with newfound resolve? Perhaps all you needed was helpful inspiration. I'm sure Esmine's prowess with the Chaos Heart's power impressed you.'

'You could be right,' Mimi replied cautiously.

'Yes, she's quite the interesting character? Did you know she's taken a liking to me?'

She swallowed. 'I guessed.'

'Such a strange girl. Well it can't be helped, as long as she remains loyal she shall have a place in my new world.'

'Somehow I don't think so.'

Dimentio looked genuinely surprised. 'Why ever not? I'll not repeat what dear Blumiere did to poor little me. I can always close off her heart like I did mine.' He chuckled. 'How unfortunate that I couldn't do that to Fawful before it was too late. We could have had such a future together as allies and I wouldn't even need the rest.'

'It's not about her feelings for you.' The girl's expression darkened. 'I know about her. I know about her brother, about her village. I know about the murderer.'

'Aha...ahahahahaha!' The magician's laughter turned hysterical; Dimentio teetered on the spot, his head flung up to face the sky. 'HAHAHAHAHAHA! Ha ha...' His head lowered; the familiar sadistic stare was spread all over his masked face. 'How could you know of her past? Not even I am certain of the details.'

'Do you remember what you told me to do before you used me to attack Fawful?' Mimi asked him. 'You told me to _really_ remember, _way _back into my past. Well...I did. I remember things that never happened to me. "Mimi" was never part of them. Someone else _was_ though; me before I was me. You know that, because you're the one who ended my old life...and gave me my new one. All for your own ends.'

Dimentio's insane smile never faltered. 'I have had such _trouble_ ending your "new life."' he sighed. 'I've gone from wanting you to detesting you to wanting you again, and if it wasn't for the Chaos Heart I'd still be mooning over you.' Mimi could imagine the look in his real eyes behind the mask just from his voice: murderous contempt, the Dark Prognosticus-inspired sadism all too present. 'It hardly needs to be said that it's about time to end all the conflict.' He clenched his fist, a powerful darkness emitting from it. He put out his hand. 'I'll end your life, and bury your secrets for the rest of eternity!'

Before he could, however, he was hit by something very large and heavy: his second-in-command, Valex. Fawful landed beside Mimi with a resounding boom, darkness radiating from his body. 'I have victory!' he declared.

'You...wow!' Mimi exclaimed. 'You took him down by yourself?'

'Heh heh,' the Bean laughed. 'I am Lord Fawful! Of coursing!'

'Grrah...' Dimentio struggled under Valex's weight before giving up and teleporting upright.

Valex got up shakily, various parts of his body missing. Half his face was burned off and his left arm was gone completely. 'S-such power...' he choked.

Dimentio was breathing tiredly. 'You're not surviving this encounter, Mi mi!' he yelled, but stopped abruptly as Fawful pointed a finger at his face, dark electricity circling it.

'You will have up shut,' he said.

Dimentio stared down the boy, his smile gone. With both her and Fawful here and Valex out of commission, Mimi knew they had the magician in his place; she had tired him out, and now the other Chaos Heart host was here. They could kill him right here and search for the Heart Stone later; the Chaos Heart could be eliminated after Dimentio was. 'It's over Dimentio,' Mimi said slowly. 'You've lost.'

A look crossed the jester's face Mimi had never seen: defeat. If he made a move, Fawful would let loose a blast so powerful it would wipe out not only Dimentio, but Valex and a chunk of the city. She could feel the energy building within him, and she knew that Dimentio, who also harboured the Chaos Heart, could as well. 'Shameful...' he muttered. 'Overconfidence is such a horrid weakness. If only we had been left alone.' The girl knew what he meant; if Fawful hadn't intervened, he would have smeared her across the floor with the Chaos Heart's full dark power.

'It's over,' she said again. 'Do it now Fawful!' She clenched her fists, trying to fight off the agonizing sadness growing in her heart; she couldn't turn back now. Dimentio couldn't be saved.

Suddenly a pair of hands wrapped around Fawful's chest. He cried out and Mimi instinctively turned to look, her attention shifting long enough for Dimentio to jump up and whip a magical attack at her. An electrifying pain pulsed through her and she stumbled back, a Rubee appearing in her hand. She smashed the next projectile away with it and regained her footing, ready to block anything the magician tried hitting her with.

'What wonderful timing, Esmine!' Dimentio beamed, his grin returning.

Esmine had a hard look on her face. 'Thought it was.' She spun Fawful around and looked into his eyes; the demon's began to slow with a mysterious light. 'Oh Fawful...' she said, her voice sweet and endearing. She smiled innocently. 'That mean girl is trying to hurt me. Please protect me...'

A second passed and she let go of him. The Bean whipped around to face Mimi and angrily drew his blaster. 'Fink-rat!' he shouted. 'How dare you make her have hurt? I have fury!'

'F...Fawful?' Mimi's head went from Dimentio to Fawful to Esmine, all of which were ready to hit her with some sort of attack. She settled on Esmine, scowling. 'What did you do to him?' she demanded.

The red-haired girl's red eyes flickered. 'Do you know what a succubus is Mimi? It's a demon with the power of infatuation. I can make any male fall head over heels in love with me with no effort at all. I've been doing it for fifteen hundred years. There's varying degrees, too. Poor little Fawful here has no idea who you are.' Mimi was surprised at Esmine's stony look; could she not want to do this?

'A succubus?' She felt completely helpless; her heart was pounding and she was fighting back shakes. 'That explains it...they were all acting so strangely.' A thought occurred to her. 'If you can make men fall in love with you, then why not...?'

Esmine's face shadowed. 'Shut up.'

'Ah,' Dimentio cut in. 'That would be the Chaos Heart's doing. You can't be affected by a succubus if you can't love in the first place.'

'Esmine,' Mimi said urgently. 'You don't have to do this! I...I know you don't want to!'

'How do you know about my brother?' Out of the corner of her eye Mimi saw Dimentio shift on the spot.

'My dear minion,' he said quickly. 'Do away with her now, there's no point in delaying the inevitable after all.'

'No,' she replied curtly. 'This _thing_ knows something about my brother, and I'm going to squeeze every bit of information out of her before she dies!'

'She won't tell the truth, you know. She's such a filthy liar she puts me to shame! Ahahaha!' The laughter was so forced it made Mimi almost feel sorry for him.

'What's your issue anyway? This doesn't have anything to do with you at all.' Dimentio stayed stock still; if he killed Mimi now he'd look suspicious.

'Esmine...I'm no succubus or demon, but I'm equally less human.' The shape-shifter began to feel some control coming back in. 'I used to be a human...I lived in your village. I lived in the same way everyone else did. I couldn't make jewels appear, I couldn't shape-shift, I was just a normal human girl. Then someone came, someone evil and cruel. He killed me and took me away to a witch, who turned me into the person I am now. Esmine...I've had this feeling that I've met you before, and I have! I just wasn't _me_.'

Esmine was staring at her, remembrance dawning on her face; she remembered Mimi before she was reborn. She was shaking slightly and Fawful was blinking, holding his head and groaning; Esmine's powers were losing their hold. 'You...you're alive...' she breathed. 'I...oh Grambi...'

'The same person who killed me razed the entire village we lived at, the same person killed your brother!' Dimentio's arms were crossed and he stared blankly. 'I still remember exactly what he looked like, I still remember who he was! I can remember beyond my new life...I know the murderer who killed your brother.'

Esmine clenched her fists and Fawful lurched, clutching his stomach; the hold had vanished completely. 'Who?' she demanded. 'Who was it?'

'It's not "was," it's "is;" he's still alive today.'

'That's impossible,' the succubus said in disbelief. 'He couldn't be immortal, he didn't get the Dark Prognosticus, so he would have died of old age. He wanted it to see his future.'

Mimi shook her head. 'That's wrong. He didn't want it to see his future, he wanted it to MAKE the future. He already knew what the book said and wanted it to make its predictions come true.'

'Who...who would want that to come true?' She blinked and seemed to pale. 'Wait...'

'The person who killed your brother...you've been helping him. It's Dimentio, Esmine. Dimentio is the murderer.'

There was silence among the group, save for Fawful's coughing. Esmine was shaking her head slowly. 'No, that can't be true. He couldn't be...'

'You told me that you can see the past using the Chaos Heart's power,' the green girl said, grasping onto the idea. 'Search my memories and see for yourself!'

Esmine didn't speak; she just put out her hand. A thin black mist spewed out and surrounded Mimi and she began to suddenly remember things, starting from the present and working their way back. 'Too recent...' the demon muttered. The memories sped up and soon Mimi was reliving parts of her past: fighting Princess Peach in Castle Bleck, watching the destruction of Sammer's Kingdom, fighting Mario and Peach in the girls' bathroom. They went back further: Mimi writing in her diary, Dimentio giving her a white rose, Count Bleck finding her stranded in a destroyed dimension...and then everything went black. Esmine frowned. 'What?' she said, confused.

'Keep going,' Mimi told her. 'There's a blank spot, just keep going!' Dimentio just stared, probably regretting not killed her by now.

There were memories, but only a few, painful ones: lying on the ground in pain, her neck broken and cracking, her lying naked on a table, two figures looking over her...and then a flash of white light brought them into the shape-shifter's previous life.

_She was running as fast as she could, fear the only emotion she could feel. Her home burned around her, the cries of dying people, her family and friends, still present in her ears. She ran and ran, be it over parts of destroyed houses or worse, parts of destroyed people. Someone was following her, but she didn't dare look back. She just needed to get as far away as possible..._

_She tripped, hitting the ground hard. She scrambled up, her hands and knees cut...and felt a hand grasp her shoulder. She spun around, getting a good look at her attacker: a jester in purple and yellow, his face hidden by a black and white mask._

_'My oh my…' he said quietly. 'Aren't you a pretty little girl?' He extended a hand and touched her cheek. 'You look so much like her…' She couldn't make a sound, she just stared, frozen in terror. 'Did you know I killed her too? Ahahahaha!'_

The memory ended as the girl screamed, a merciful cut-off to the death they knew would occur.

Esmine's eyes were wide; she stepped back in total shock, her mouth opening and closing with no words coming out. She slowly turned her head to meet Dimentio's false eyes. 'Y…y-you…' she choked finally.

Dimentio's blank stare at last changed; a broad smile took its place. 'Hahahaha...AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!' he laughed. Esmine's shell-shocked expression turned horrified. 'AHAHAHAHA!' The jester quieted down, still giggling to himself. 'How unfortunate.' Fawful had gotten back up and was trained on Dimentio again warily. A crash bellowed in the distance, followed by Bowser's victorious bellow; Midbus was down. 'The battle of the giants has ended in my loss. I myself have failed in my own attempts.'

'The Inverses won't last much longer,' Valex warned. 'Their numbers have decreased by hundreds.'

'And,' Dimentio finished, 'my seemingly inexhaustible army has been exhausted by two plumbers and a princess.'

'You killed my brother...?' Esmine said, breathing quickly, seemingly oblivious to any of Dimentio's words.

The magician sighed and fixed his eyes on the succubus, no emotion besides laughable distaste present on his face. 'Yes,' he answered with a hint of sadistic humour in his voice. 'The one who ended your brother's life is me. _I_ slaughtered hundreds of your kin. _I_ took the life of an innocent girl to use as my own personal pet project. _I_ killed your dear little brat of a brother, all because he was unfortunate enough to pick up the most dangerous prophetic tomb in all of existence. _I_ did it all. And I'd do it again and again, all to see the look on his face once he realized he was going to die, that there was no way out. That child knew so much for his age, had so much wisdom in his eyes, yet when faced with the inevitable he broke completely. How could I not let him suffer?' The smile on his face turned dark. 'He was a source of such amusement.'

'You...you monster...' Esmine breathed. 'You...' A shudder racked her body. 'YOU KILLED MY BROTHER!' she screamed. Dark energy exploded from her, blowing them all back save for Dimentio, who stood there unaffected. 'YOU KILLED HIM! HE'S GONE AND IT'S ALL _YOUR_ FAULT!' She ran at him, darkness covering her body, absolute, mind-numbing rage written all over face. 'I'LL KILL YOU! I'LL TEAR YOU TO PIECES!' She flung out her hands and a huge discharge of dark energy made the hair on all of their necks stand up. The entire city block Dimentio had been in front of was completely destroyed, a huge hole in the middle of the ruined city.

'Ahahaha!' the jester laughed; he had lost so much: the battle, a valuable minion, and yet he could still laugh away at the end of it all. 'I'm the most heinous monster of them all,' he yelled from behind her, 'and yet still you aided me! Your heart cried out to me, you even started to love me!' Esmine turned and shot another, weaker blast, yet Dimentio avoided it like the first. 'And now you know the truth.' He landed on the ground, staring at her. Midbus, Valex, and the army of Inverses had all disappeared; it was only Dimentio left. 'Now you know that everything you've done and felt has been for naught, that you've only been helping the person you hate more than anybody else in the universe. I killed your brother. Now _you_ will live with that knowledge forever.' He put his hand up and waved. 'Ciao~.' He disappeared.

Esmine stood still, silent, for a few long moments. Mario, Luigi, Peach, and Bowser had all arrived to see the tense scene. They didn't know the details, but they knew something horrible had happened. A sob sounded from the succubus and Mimi felt a horrible melancholy taking over her heart; Esmine had been helping the very same person who had caused her such great pain. The thought was unbearable.

'Esmine...?' she whispered, walking over to her.

Another sob escaped her lips; she was shaking. 'I...he...' she choked. She dropped to her knees and slammed her head against the hard floor; Esmine screamed, a terrible, betrayed, agonized scream. 'I'm a _FOOL!_' she bawled. 'A stupid, _STUPID_ fool!'

'You couldn't have known,' Mimi assured her. 'You were just doing what you felt was right.'

'How could you know what this feels like?' she shot, meeting her eyes with an angry, tear-stained glare.

'I almost ended the world too,' the girl answered. 'I nearly helped someone destroy everything who would have left it all ruined. But I turned back. We all did.'

'Why...? How could you possibly do that?'

'We united with the heroes...' she gestured towards the four Heroes of Prophecy. '...against a common enemy. That was Dimentio.'

'And you're the only one left of the group now. Dimentio killed them all.' Esmine sniffled.

Mimi felt old pain coming back. '...yeah. I wasn't related to any of them, but they were all like family to me. Dimentio...Dimentio was like family to me. He betrayed us all.'

Esmine stopped making noise, just stared at the ground. 'We have a lot in common, don't we?' she said after a few long moments.

'I guess so...' the shape-shifter replied.

Esmine looked up at her, a new look in her eyes. Mimi extended a hand; the succubus took it and stood up. 'I never thought he...I thought I could trust him.'

'So did I, Esmine, so did I.'

After a moment of silence, the other five walked over. 'I've pieced together the details,' Mario said sympathetically. 'I'm so sorry...'

'Yeah...' Luigi added. 'It sounds so sad.'

'I can't imagine what you must be feeling right now...' Peach said quietly. 'I'm sorry too.'

'...sounds rough,' Bowser admitted.

'I have sadness...' Fawful sighed.

Esmine looked from one hero to the next, new tears appearing in her eyes. 'You're all so..._good_,' she said, her voice cracking. 'I've never met people like you before...willing to sacrifice everything to help the worlds.'

'There are some with a lot of light in their hearts,' Mimi told her.

'And some with only darkness,' Esmine added, malice in her voice.

The green girl's heart sank; Dimentio DID have light in his heart...it was just hidden by three thousand years of the Dark Prognosticus' influence. There was no way to save him even if he wanted to be. 'Are you all right now?' she asked.

'No,' Esmine answered, her voice somewhat controlled. 'Not at all.'

'Join us,' Mario said. 'Help us find the Heart Stone that we couldn't find here. We can stop the Void together.'

The succubus shook her head. 'No. I always told myself that if I by some miracle found my brother's killer I would avenge his death. Well I found the killer.'

'You're going to take on Dimentio by yourself?' Mimi asked, shocked. 'You won't stand a chance!'

'I still have the power of the Chaos Heart,' she answered firmly. 'I'll be fine. Besides…there's a captive there you need free, right? Princess Rosalina.' They nodded. 'So...' She turned away. 'I'm leaving now. You'll need to get back to Merlon. My venom should have worn off by now.'

'V-venom?' Luigi gasped.

'It causes paralysis. They'll be fine.'

'And Nautoville?' Peach asked.

'...I'd say there's nothing you can do about it anymore. The town's dead and so are its inhabitants. You'll have to move on.'

'Are you sure you can't join us?' Mimi asked. 'We could use another addition to our team.'

Esmine paused, then turned around; her face had brightened a little. 'Thanks…but no.' Her eyes sparkled and the males all fidgeted. Mimi and Peach both sighed.

'I guess this is goodbye then,' Mimi said; despite her previous dislike for Esmine, she felt sad to see her go. 'Good luck.'

Her eyes stopped glowing and the men returned back to normal. They took turns shaking her hand, trying to engrave her in their minds in case the worst happened. 'Thanks for your words, all of you.' She turned to Mimi. 'You especially...you've been a great help.'

Mimi smiled and took her hand. 'I'm glad I was.'

'Um...' Esmine hesitated.

Mimi let go of her hand. 'Well...goodb—_mph!_'

Before Mimi could finish, Esmine grabbed her and kissed her. The shape-shifter's eyes widened in surprise and squirmed, trying to push the succubus away. Esmine started after a moment and let go, turning away in embarrassment. 'Wh...what?' Mimi sputtered, her face reddening in discomfort.

Actual heat could practically be felt from Esmine as her skin blushed. 'S-sorry...'

'Th-that's fine, but...why?' Mimi was still reeling from the surprise.

'I've been seducing men with my powers for a long time,' she explained. 'I guess I've just always taken to people my powers don't affect. You, Di...Dimentio, and...'

'And your brother?'

'You could say so.' She looked away sadly. 'I'll see you when everything's all over. All of you.' She made to flip away.

'Esmine, wait!' Mimi called. 'What was my name? Before it was "Mimi?"'

'Oh.' The succubus looked at her. 'Your name...it was Rose.'

Mimi's heart leapt and the image of a pink-haired girl flashed through her mind. 'Fate...' she murmured to herself. When she looked up, Esmine was gone.

She turned to face the group. 'We should go,' Mario advised them.

'Yeah,' Luigi agreed. 'Back to Toad Town.'

'Let's take them back Fawful.' When Mimi looked at him, a look of surprise was only just vanishing. 'Oh get over it,' she muttered, her cheeks heating up again.

They all flipped out.

Esmine

Esmine flipped into Castle Dimentio and ran through the halls as fast as she could without making any noise. The flaming torches cast eerie shadows against the slick grey stones that covered the walls and floor, a long rug beneath her feet that had the masks of Comedy and Tragedy on it covered the floor. The Void raging outside the castle created a dark, contrasting mood and suddenly she felt afraid; the place that had once been her home was now a bastion of evil to her. She needed to do her job and leave.

She avoided the Inverse guards that patrolled the halls, silently killing any that happened to spot her using what remained of her powerful gift from Dimentio. Once she saw Doopliss and Grubba strolling through talking to each other; she avoided them too. They were firmly on Dimentio's side, and no news of a betrayal to her would change that. She hadn't liked them much, really, but she still pitied them, working for that monster. When they passed she carried on her way.

She found the way to the dungeon and ran down the steps. There was a guard standing in front of the cell she knew held the princess; she turned it to dust easily.

'Oh?' said a voice from inside the cell. 'A visitor?' Rosalina stood up and regarded her. 'I've been left alone for a while now.'

'Rosalina, I've come to free you,' Esmine told her in a harsh whisper. 'Don't make any noise.' She tugged on the cell door and bars; they wouldn't yield. She tried melting them with her dark magic, but they stayed strong.

'It's no use,' the cosmic princess silently lamented. 'The jester used some sort of magic on the bars. They won't budge.'

'Can't you just use magic to get away from here?' the demon asked her desperately.

'Yes, but my wand has been taken.'

'Your...wand?' Esmine reached into her dress and her hand settled on a familiar object: Rosalina's star-tipped wand. Dimentio had given it to her to hold on to. Esmine smiled. 'I think I have just what you want.' She tossed it through the bars.

Esmine was just walking now, up to the place she knew Dimentio would be waiting. When she got to the throne room doors, she stopped. The one who had taken her brother, her whole life from her was beyond the doors. It was now or never. Without time to think things through, she pushed open the doors.

The torches were lit; sitting in the throne across the room was Dimentio, his head tilted and resting on one of his hands. 'Dimentio!' she yelled, her voice echoing.

'Ah Esmine!' he exclaimed. 'You arrive like an elderly businessman to his high school reunion greeting old acquaintances!'

'Shut up!' she spat, throwing a blast of darkness at him; it hit the throne and exploded, blasting the succubus' face with wind. The throne was unharmed and Dimentio had vanished.

_'Ahahahaha!' _the jester laughed from nowhere, his voice bouncing off the walls. _'Your aim is as bad as a grunt from a 1977 American epic space opera film!'_

'You killed my brother!' she screamed. 'Now I'll avenge his death!'

_'Oh why bother?'_ the magician replied. _'It's all in the past. His soul will be destroyed soon regardless.'_

'I don't care!' Esmine shot back. 'He was my entire _life!_ The only one that matters is him! You're nothing! You're absolutely worthless! You're just a stupid, pathetic jester! You...'

A _ping! _sounded and Dimentio appeared, staring her down. He brought his hand up and took off his mask, letting it drop to the floor. As approached her, his eyes glinting dangerously. 'Nothing?' he repeated. 'Worthless? You're mistaken.' He clenched his fists and Esmine froze; the man's eyes seemed to be looking through her. 'I am _not_ pathetic...' he spat furiously. 'I...I _am _something...much more than _him_.' An insane smile spread across his face and Esmine started walking backwards.

'Get back!' she exclaimed, shooting a blast at him. He put his hand out and the shot was absorbed into his body. He snapped his fingers and Esmine gasped as all the dark power was sucked out of her body; she saw the misty blackness seep out of her pores and back into Dimentio. Her back hit the wall and she could do nothing as he approached her.

'Ahahaha...' he laughed quietly. He was right up to her, his insane eyes staring into hers. 'Yes...I am the Master of Dimensions, the Pleaser of Crowds. I am Dimentio, the Charming Magician.' He put a hand on her chest, magic glowing from it. Esmine gasped as his hand went into her body and grasped her heart. Her eyes were wide and a horrible, indescribable pain burned in her chest. He squeezed and she lurched, coughing. She could feel the blood pulsing in her veins, popping and tearing. 'I'm afraid our little, backstabbing princess...just went a little too far.' Dimentio's eyes were lost in the past. The succubus coughed, blood dripping down her chin; she was dying. Fifteen thousand years of life and now it was all slipping away faster than she thought it could. She had stood no chance against Dimentio, not a single chance. Her vision was blurring, not from tears but from her brain shutting down. He squeezed harder, a stabbing agony blocking out rational thought. 'Farewell...' His voice dropped to an almost silent whisper. 'Ciao...Rosabella.'

He squeezed one last time and her heart burst in her chest; Esmine's life flickered out in an instant.

Dimentio stared, pulling his hand out; it was soaked in blood. As he stared at Esmine's lifeless body he saw not the demon, but Princess Rosabella, his former friend and love. 'Hahahaha...' he laughed darkly. 'Hahahahaha...AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!' He swept a hand across her throat, slicing her head clean off. 'Is this what you wanted?' he screamed in demented glee. 'Is this the fate you sought, Rosabella? Is this the outcome you saw of your pathetic romance? Hahahahahaha!' He grabbed Esmine's arm and dug his fingers into it, dark smoke curling off his fingers at the touch. Her skin melted away and he tore the limb off at the shoulder, scarlet blood oozing out of the dismembered joint. 'Is this the destiny of those who live in lavish?' he shrieked. 'Is this what comes of this skewed justice? Yes...YES!' He grabbed the other arm and ripped it off the succubus' body, ignoring the gore coating his clothes. He heard the door open, but he didn't care. He could see both Doopliss and Grubba walking in to bloody scene, but it didn't matter to him. Doopliss' face slowly contorted into wide-eyed horror, and even Grubba, as uncaring as he was to human life, looked away with his hand clasped over his mouth. 'THIS is the price to pay for your betrayal!' He reached down and pulled off her leg, throwing it up into the air. 'THIS is what comes of royal vanity!' The other leg came off too, leaving Esmine wide-eyed and limbless. '_THIS_ IS THE PENALTY FOR IMPERFECTION!' He reached with both hands and burrowed his fingers into her chest, cackling as he pulled her ribcage apart; her empty, crumpled heart bubbled in her body. Dimentio slashed his hard across her body, blood splashing like waves against rocks. He squinted as it streaked against his face, opening his eyes back up after. He laughed and laughed, feeling the darkness in his heart thriving. 'ALL HAIL EMPEROR DIMENTIO!' he bellowed in madness, slashing again and again. 'AHAHAHAHAHA! _**AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!**_'


	36. Chapter 36: Purity

Chapter 36: Purity

?

The room was as black as ever. Every time he went to sleep he dreamed of being reunited with his allies, of being free, and yet when he woke up he was still in the exact same place he had fallen asleep. Dimentio hadn't visited since the first time, and he had begun to go antsy from a lack of human contact and conversation for so long. He almost began to _want_ the jester to visit him. Almost.

He sighed and stretched his arms, feeling the cloth wrapped around each tear under the pressure. 'Bloomin' madman...' he grunted, his voice cracked and faint from lack of use.

_'I sense a very large degree of hostility, even from such a brief insult.'_ A _ping!_ signalled Dimentio's arrival.

'Yeh should,' the man growled. 'Psycho.'

'It's always such a _pleasure_ talking with you. Hehehehehe. Haha.' Though his sight was limited, he could see Dimentio looking out the window. 'How has your stay been? Do you feel at home again?'

'Not on yer life.'

'Such a shame. Ahahahaha.' The magician turned his head over to look at him; the man's facial response was murderous. 'Well...do you remember how I told you that you could be an asset to me? Have you given that thought?' The man didn't move. 'Well, I'll tell you: you're not an acceptable target.' Dimentio reached into his poncho and pulled out a small, round object no bigger than the average grape. 'You remember what _this_ is, don't you?' The jester walked up to him, his grin huge. He rolled the thing around his fingers, chuckling to himself. 'Any last words?'

'Yeah,' the man huffed. 'Mario's gonna kill yeh.'

'Me, perhaps. But not _you_. Ahahaha...goodnight.'

He felt a splitting pain as Dimentio forced the thing through the top of his head. He lost consciousness.

Dimentio

_Tap, tap, tap..._

The Castle Dimentio meeting room, a pitch black and desolate reminder of the former owner of the completely-remodelled castle, was absolutely silent, save for the rhythmic tapping that echoed into everyone's ears.

_Tap, tap, tap..._

The six occupants had been reduced to five; Esmine's empty pedestal acted like a magnet to the eyes of everyone there save one. Doopliss eyed it the most, the bloody, horrifying scene still fresh in his mind. His heart was pounding even still, his ethereal form shuddering under his white sheet. His face, which normally showed a mischievous grin, was scared and childlike. Grubba wasn't immune either; every now and then his eyes would move to look at the vacant spot and he would shift uncomfortably. It wouldn't deter him enough to quit, however; even such a horrific death was simply brought on by her betrayal. Midbus glanced at the platform every now and then too, but his face bore no ill expression; he didn't see the death, all he knew was that she had needed to be eliminated. Valex didn't look at it whatsoever, just looked at Dimentio up on his own platform.

_Tap, tap, tap..._

Every time a tap sounded from the highest pillar, Doopliss and Grubba winced, reminded each time of the monster they were dealing with. Doopliss let out a soft whimper only audible to himself.

_Tap..._

The tapping stopped. Dimentio rested his hands on his lap; he sat on his pillar, which loomed high over the others, with his legs dangling over the side. A wide grin was spread over his face.

'AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!' he laughed suddenly; everyone in the room jumped and the Duplighost covered his ears. 'Hahaha...ha.' The jester let out a few quiet snickers before letting his attention fall to his minions. 'As you know,' he said to them, 'a very unfortunate event has occurred that I was foolish to not foresee. Our..._late_, former ally has allowed Princess Rosalina to escape from her cell. Now that she has her wand and is reunited with the heroes, I sense a possibility for a horribly crushing failure. This is not acceptable.' He stood up and teleported in one swift motion, floating in the exact centre point of the room. He spread his arms out in front of him as if beckoning someone to him. 'We must destroy what is left of the heroes before it is too late!' he cried. 'We must crush them in a single fell swoop, dash their hopes to the ground, _kill them all! _For if we do not then will shall fail. We shall lose. We shall _die_. Everything that we have worked so hard to achieve, all of our dreams for a perfect world...will be gone forever.'

'Um...well when you put it that—'

'FOREVER!' Dimentio screamed, cutting Doopliss off and making him practically fly up into the air. He then exploded into more laughter. 'That is why we must crush them all.'

A beat of silence passed. 'Then...what is your plan, Master?' Valex ventured.

'Simple. We commit a little more Mushroom Kingdom terrorism before the end. Ahahahaha.' A wicked grin passed across his face as he gazed upon Grubba. 'I assume your scientific endeavours have yielded results?'

'Uh, _ahem!_' Grubba coughed, clearing his throat. 'Yep, sure have. S'ready for use anytime.'

'Excellent, excellent! The heroes should be only on their way back from Nautoville now. Kindly sneak out to the castle and do your work...then _return immediately_.'

The old Clubba gulped. 'Y-yesir!' he exclaimed. 'What about after?'

'When you return, both you and Doopliss will stay behind. You are not needed further on this mission.' Grubba nodded and left. 'Valex, assemble a sizable army and lie in wait to attack. If they survive the initial attempt on their lives then I'll leave it to you to finish off any who remain.'

'Master...' the Inverse started. 'We do not have much force left. After the attempt in the forest and at Nautoville our numbers are a mere fraction of what they were before.'

'Then take all of them,' the jester ordered. 'None will survive our attack, Valex. I hope you fully understand.'

The creature started, then nodded, his face stony. 'If you say "Do this,"' he told Dimentio, 'then it shall be done.' Valex turned around and faded away from the room.

'Midbus,' the magician continued. 'You will be the main muscle of the attack. Crush any hero in your path..._especially_ Fawful. Fawful is the biggest threat to our plans of all.'

Midbus nodded. 'Yes,' he grumbled.

'Remember, however,' Dimentio reminded him. 'Leave his body intact, for the most part. Damaging the Chaos Heart would constitute a very...unfortunate end for you.' The pig nodded again and flipped out.

Dimentio and Doopliss were alone. Doopliss was still glancing over at Esmine's unoccupied pillar; he tugged on his ribbon. 'So...' he said, listening to his voice ricochet off the rooms tall walls. 'Grubba and I'll just stay here and wait then?'

'Precisely.' The jester turned to look at the spectre. 'Doopliss...I have a question to ask of you.'

Doopliss returned the stare, though his expression was much less confident. '...yeah?'

'Grubba desires a forever-young, strong body. Midbus yearns for a godlike power. Esmine desired a world free from murder and deceit. Valex merely follows his creator's orders. I myself long for a perfect world free of strife and judgement. All of us have clear reasons for the things we do.' The jester's masked eyes bore deep into Doopliss'. 'Except for you. I've spent some time with you here, yet I cannot fathom your reasons for joining my cause. Was it for power? Money? A perfect world like I? No, it was none of those.' Dimentio's eyes narrowed. 'Unlike the rest, you don't _have _a clear goal in mind. I think all you wanted was a way to cause mischief and stave off your boredom.' His arms crossed. 'What do you plan to do once my world is a reality, Doopliss? What do you _want?_' The Duplighost frowned and averted his gaze. 'I suggest you have an answer the next time I ask. Those with flimsy ideals don't deserve a place in my world...just as traitors don't either.' He saw Doopliss' eyes widen for a moment; the ghost shook himself to focus.

'I'll...have my answer,' he replied.

'Good, good.' Dimentio smiled. 'Now if you'll excuse me, I have my own business to attend to. Ciao for now!' He snapped his fingers and cackled as the excitement of the mission to come welled up in his heart.

Fawful

The world spun as they flipped through dimensions; when they stopped he let out a cry of pain and collapsed to the ground.

'Fawful?' Mimi exclaimed. 'What happened?'

The Bean choked on his words, his heart pounding, the Chaos Heart ripping through the light that kept him tied to sanity, unlike Dimentio. 'I...' he gasped, clutching his chest. Mimi's next word was drowned out as his sight left him.

_'Do you feel the power?'_

_Wh...?_

'—appening with Fawful!' the boy heard Mimi tell the rest.

'Hey!' Bowser (surprisingly) yelled. 'What's goi—'

His sight blacked out again and he felt a burning sensation travelling up his neck.

_'My power. My eternal power. The power to destroy everything.'_

_I...I do not..._ Fawful thought painfully.

_'It will overtake you soon...both of you will fall to decay.'_

_D...Dimen..._

_'A message to you both...'_

_I have f-fear..._

_...Chaos Heart?_ Fawful's actual heart skipped a beat; it was Dimentio's thoughts.

_'I DO NOT WISH TO DIE.'_

Fawful was thrown back into consciousness as if waking up from a horrible nightmare: tense and afraid. Everyone was crowded around him and looking at him, concerned. 'Fawful?' Mario asked. 'What happened?'

'I...' He sighed and stood up, trying to fight off the buzz going up and down his neck. 'Minding never,' he said, and walked towards Merlon's house.

'Fawful—' Mario started, but stopped when a small wave of dark energy made their neck hair stand on end. They shivered and followed in his wake.

Before they could approach Merlon's house, the door swung open and someone walked out, obviously beside himself.

'...and if I don't help him, who will? He's going to—'

'Kamek?' Bowser said, frowning.

'Lord Bowser!' Kamek yelped, dropping the wand he was carrying. He scrambled to pick it up.

'What's the rush, you old coot?'

'I was coming to help you!' the old Magikoopa exclaimed, flustered. 'I thought you were done for!'

'Done for? Bwa ha ha! No one beats ME!'

'Wait,' Mario interjected. 'You thought we were dead?'

'Heroes of the Light Prognosticus!' The three Merlons came out of the house, the fortune-teller leading. 'You have returned!' He ushered them inside. 'Come, come, we have urgent business.'

Nolrem closed the door and Toad Town's fortune-teller sat down before his crystal ball. 'Thank goodness you're alive...' Flipside's Merlon sighed breathlessly.

'Why'd you think we were dead in the first place?' Luigi asked.

'Well, you see...' Merlon responded carefully. 'I can no longer see the future.'

'What?' Peach frowned. 'How can that be?'

'I don't know.' Merlon sighed. 'All my crystal ball shows me...is a never-ending expanse of blackness.' They could hear the Void boom in the sky and the ground shook under their feet like a powerful earthquake.

'A t-tremor!' Luigi gasped.

Kamek cried out as he fell, only to be stopped by Bowser. 'Be careful, darn it!' the Koopa King growled. 'You're not fully healed yet!'

The tremor calmed down; several things of Merlon's had fallen off of shelves and shattered into pieces. 'Grambi help us...' Flipside's prophet breathed.

'If this keeps up not even Grambi will survive,' Nolrem pointed out darkly.

Another thunderclap pierced the silence. 'The Void has grown to an astronomical size,' Toad Town's Merlon whispered. 'It covers every inch of the horizon. It blots out the sun, yet we still receive light. It threatens to engulf the Mushroom World...no doubt one of the last worlds which would be consumed. We are too close to the end. Too, too close.'

'We...we didn't get the Heart Stone...' Luigi lamented, drained.

'You had no chance,' Nolrem replied. 'The Heart Stone was never in Nautoville.'

Fawful's heart stopped for what he was sure was at least five seconds. He felt his face drain and his chest sink. 'WHAT?' everyone screamed.

'I...the succubus!' the fortune-teller squeaked, his tone betraying his shame. 'She...she told me to lead you there instead of where your fortunes truly lay!'

'Esmine...' Mimi said in a tone both sad and angry. 'I wonder if Dimentio's killed her yet...'

'Where's the Heart Stone?' Bowser demanded.

'The Heart Stone...' Merlon coughed. 'This information may be incredibly upsetting to you,' he warned them.

'We need to know!' Mario said firmly. 'Where is it Merlon?'

'It's...' His voice lowered as he spoke, making it impossible to hear.

'Merlon...' Princess Peach glowered, a very dangerous edge creeping into her voice. 'If you don't tell us right this instant I swear I will arrest you and have you punished horribly!'

'Whoa...' was the synchronized response.

'...Princess Peach's Castle,' the mage told them.

Another beat of silence.

'...my castle?'

'Yes.'

'You mean to tell us...' Mario said slowly and deliberately, 'that we just travelled for four days when our goal was _right here?_'

'I did warn you that it would be upsetting,' Merlon muttered, fidgeting.

Everyone made their own exclamation of disbelief. 'Well then where in the castle is it?' Luigi shouted.

'I'm afraid we don't know,' Flipside's Merlon groaned. 'Merlon was having trouble deciphering the location as it was, and by the time he had determined the general area he had lost all connection to the future.'

'We told the shrimps in the castle to start looking for it,' Kamek huffed, 'but they didn't trust us. They said the only person they would listen to would be you, Your _Highness_.' He glared at Peach.

'Kamek, don't glare at my wife!' Bowser snarled.

'I don't think that marriage counted...' Luigi muttered.

'Enough!' Peach yelled, making her way to the door. 'I'll get the Toads in the castle to start looking.'

'Make haste,' the fortune-teller warned as the ground shook again beneath their feet. 'We don't have much time left.'

Fawful squirmed. Groaning, he flipped over and tugged the bed sheets up over his head. Another short burst of burning pain shot up his neck and he gave a small twitch. He could _feel_ the inky black substance travelling up his jugular veins. He could faintly hear the clamour of Toads running outside the hall, searching high and low. They had already searched the bedrooms, so there was absolutely no chance of them running in and disturbing what little sleep he could possibly get.

He tensed as a large tremor shook the castle; the crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling shook and tinkled as the whole building quavered. There was _no way_ he was getting sleep tonight.

The little scientist put on his glasses, got up and walked around the room; he had no destination in particular, he just needed to walk. He yawned and slumped, resting his head on his hands and his elbows on the desk in the room. Dimentio's grinning face stared back at him, mask gone.

'Why?' Fawful asked aloud. 'Why have evil? Why have the destruction of everything? Why? It has wastefulness.' He rubbed his eyes, careful not to touch the inside of his spiralled lenses. He began to wonder again why he had chosen the path of villainy. Dimentio had chosen that path, and it had gotten trillions of innocent lives lost. Even though he had never really cared about the well being of people before, the fact that they were all _gone_ made him sick to his stomach. 'Oh Cackletta...' he whispered. 'Fawful had a question...that had unansweredness.'

Fawful got dressed back into his regular attire; he felt strange without his cape. He put his Headgear on his head and turned it on; it buzzed and looked at him quizzically. 'I have fear...' the Bean muttered as the Void roared. 'Fear that this is being the end...'

Bowser

The basement of Peach's Castle was cold and dark. While the King of Koopas didn't generally _dislike_ cold and dark places, he was surprised that Peach didn't decorate the whole lower floor in pink, mushroom-y crud. It was a nice change from the norm, he thought.

'Bwa ha ha!' he laughed. 'Finally I can stop looking at all the princess-y stuff!' He held his grin for a full fifteen seconds before it finally wore away and he sat down, a scowl on his face. 'Stupid Toads!' he grumbled. 'Kicking me out to the basement...too huge my scaly butt!' He thought of breathing fire to express his anger...but that would just attract too much attention. 'GRAAAH!' he bellowed, and punched a wall. 'Grr...grah!' He punched it again; a deep crack had shown up. He gave it a few more punches before it finally broke away, leaving a huge hole in the wall revealing...

'Huh?' Bowser said. Behind the wall was another wall, some few feet away. The giant Koopa managed to squeeze into the little hallway. He shuffled down it; it was circular and went all the way around the castle's basement. Eventually he found another way to go and went down it. At the end of the hall was a flight of stairs going down into the basement. 'This...is weird,' Bowser remarked to himself. 'Wait...' He remembered what Merlon had said: _The Heart Stone is in Princess Peach's Castle._ 'Hey...I think I might be onto something! Hah! Wait 'till Mr. Mustachio hears about _this!_' He trudged along, filled with a new determination. A few more minutes of walking brought him to a large, steel door, bolted shut. 'Gwa ha ha!' he laughed. 'No door shuts out King Bowser!' He breathed out a plume of fire, heating up the metal and turning it a glowing orange colour. He backed up, tensed, and ran at the door; his large, sturdy body went right through it.

He looked up; in the centre of the small room was a small stand. As Bowser approached it he saw something on its top: an engraving, shaped very specifically like a heart.

'No Heart Stone...' Bowser murmured. 'But...' He slammed his fist on the stand. 'This has gotta be it! If it's not here...then someone stole it!' He spun around and ran up the stairs as fast as his bulky body could allow him. 'I gotta tell the rest...' He reached the top of the stairs, ran back the way he came, and went through the hole so hard he made it even bigger.

He stopped; he was not alone. 'Hey!' he growled.

Dimentio spun around. 'Ah...I've been caught. What an upset.'

'Dimentio! What're you doing here?'

A wicked smile crossed over the jester's masked face. 'Why...preparing for sabotage.' He moved aside and gestured at the machine attached to the castle's ceiling. 'I had hidden it from your prying eyes...but there's no reason to hide it from you now.'

Bowser's eyes widened. 'That's the...!'

'The Dark Energy Bomb, yes.' Dimentio laughed. 'Much bigger than before, isn't it? Grubba had _such_ a hard time with it, I feel like it would be a shame to make it go to waste.'

'You...I'll clobber you a new nose-hole!' the Koopa roared.

'Ah ah ah!' the jester chuckled, snapping his fingers. 'I believe it's time for a nice little reunion!' Another person appeared beside Dimentio. 'Say hello again to—'

'O'Chunks?' Bowser exclaimed. 'But...you...you're dead!'

'All part of the plan, my dear enemy,' the magician said, waving his hand. 'Oh O'Chunks...be a good boy and tear Bowser apart, will you?'

The Floro Sprout twitched on O'Chunks' head. 'Yessir Mister Dimentio, sir!' he quipped almost drunkenly. He pounded his knuckles together.

'O'Chunks!' Bowser yelled. 'Cut it out! You've been brainwashed!'

'Not likely, yeh stinkin' turtle! Master Dimentio'd never brainwash me!'

'Grrr...' the Koopa snarled. 'You're gonna pay for this you stupid clown!'

Dimentio laughed again. 'I think not.' The world shook. 'The Void is almost upon this dimension...and your precious Purity Heart is not complete! You still need this.'

Bowser gasped as the jester revealed a pink, multifaceted stone nearly the size of Dimentio's hand. It glittered brightly despite there not being an adequate light source. 'That's the Heart Stone!'

'Yes...and without it, your entire adventure here has been completely meaningless! Ahahahahaha! You all shall fall to the Void...whether the bomb kills you all or not!' He snapped his fingers and the warrior leapt at him without warning. The Koopa King bellowed as he was forced right through the hole he had made in the wall and against the wall. 'But of course O'Chunks will prevent you from warning the rest.'

Bowser growled. 'O'Chunks...' he coughed. 'Sorry about this.' He breathed fire into the Scotsman's face, who yelped and scrambled to put out the fire on his beard. The huge Koopa punched him in the stomach hard, wincing as his fist met O'Chunks' metal armour. He slammed into him and ran at Dimentio, but the warrior grabbed his horns and yanked; Bowser yelled out in pain and fell over onto his back before O'Chunks came down on his stomach. 'GRAAAAAAAAAUGH!' he bellowed, gasping for air. 'D...D...DIMENTIO!'

Bowser and Dimentio locked eyes; Bowser's were wide and livid, Dimentio's calm and mocking. 'Ciao, Bowser,' the magician said. 'I hope you give O'Chunks a good fight before the end.' Smiling, he disappeared.

Fawful

_Knock knock knock._ Fawful and his Headgear both turned; someone was at the door. He walked over and opened it.

'Hi Fawful.' It was Mimi.

'Mimi?' The Bean was surprised. 'Why do you not have sleep?'

'I can't...things are just too...scary now.' She wobbled as another tremor racked the world. 'The Void...it's too close. I remember this happening to Sammer's Kingdom. Everyone went crazy. I can feel it now...even the Toads are on edge. I'm sure they're glad to be searching for the Heart Stone, they need something to distract them.' Fawful knew exactly what Mimi was talking about: doom itself was heavy in the air, and everyone in the entire dimension could feel it. 'Nobody's asleep now. I bet you anything everybody in the world is awake. Nobody would dare waste time asleep...the world's ending.'

Fawful gulped nervously. 'I have hope that they will have the finding of the Heart Stone with great quickness.'

The green girl nodded. 'Me too. I don't...I don't think the Mushroom World is going to be around for long now.'

The boy looked away and sighed. 'I have agreement. Have the coming in.' He sat down on the bed; Mimi sat beside him. 'I also have the feeling...that Fawful will not have aroundness much longer either.'

Mimi frowned. 'What do you mean?'

Fawful turned to look at her. 'Have the looking here.' He tilted his head up and tugged down on his black shirt; the Chaos Heart's blackness had gone all the way up his neck and was just barely going up his chin.

'Oh...I didn't see that.' She looked worried. 'What's going to happen once it spreads completely?'

_Do you feel the power?_ Fawful blinked a few times, fighting back tears; he was afraid. He had already died twice, but even now he couldn't shake that horrible fear of death. _My power. My eternal power. The power to destroy everything._ The Chaos Heart was taking over his body. _It will overtake you soon...both of you will fall to decay. _Once it had a complete hold over his body...there was no way it could handle the Heart's incomplete, hazardous power.

'Fawful will have...decaying,' he said. 'That is what the Chaos Heart had the saying of.'

'You'll die then...'

The boy crossed his arms. 'By the time of that, we will all have death.' He saw Mimi shiver beside him; he closed his hand around hers and smiled. 'But that is why we must have the times of good: just in casing.'

Mimi stared at their two hands, fingers intertwined. She looked up at Fawful, then back down at their hands. 'Good times...'

'Mimi?' Fawful's smile disappeared. 'Do you have okay?'

The girl looked up at him and then back down at their hands once more. She sighed and pulled her hand away, resting it on her lap. 'Fawful...I'm sorry.'

'Sorry? Mimi...what has wrongness?'

Mimi looked into Fawful's eyes. 'There's something I need to tell you. I don't...I...' She shook. 'I love—'

Both children froze; suddenly, deep within their hearts, a horrible feeling of melancholy and dread took over; it was as if all the happiness had been taken from their body, leaving only negativity. 'No...' Fawful breathed.

'That's the...!' the girl started; the image of the Excess Express was fresh in their minds.

Fawful leapt to his feet, grabbed Mimi, turned around, and dashed madly towards the room's window.

Dimentio

The Master of Dimensions looked over Princess Peach's Castle from up on a cliff's edge overlooking the huge manor. A victorious smile was plastered on his face. 'Today's the day!' he exclaimed in a singsong voice, laughing. 'Today the day that the heroes meet their ends! Such a climactic end...they'll go out with a bang! Ahahahahaha!' He tossed the Heart Stone up into the air and caught it. 'All of their trials...' he said, holding back more laughter. 'All of their sacrifices, all of their pain!' He caved and laughed again. 'Ahahahaha! It is all for naught! They will fall in the name of Dimentio's perfect world! The Dark One will triumph! Hahaha...' He spun the Stone around on his finger. 'My dream will finally be realized.' As he looked down upon the castle, he remembered that Mimi was in it as well and felt a burst of pain in his heart. 'Such a shame...that I will be in agony every time I think of her. Your work is shoddy, Chaos Heart. Ahahaha.'

_'...let go.'_

Dimentio grasped the Heart Stone and frowned. 'Pardon?'

_'Throw that stone away.'_

'Why ever so? Victory is within our grasp! Why bother parting with such a meaningless thing? It's not like it can kill me.'

_'Get rid of it Dimentio! It reeks of love...I loathe simply being in its presence!'_

'Ahahaha! The great and all powerful artefact of ultimate destruction, the Chaos Heart, afraid of a little pink rock? This isn't a Purity Heart, so you should live.'

_'You fool! Listen to my words!'_

Dimentio snickered. 'This is such _fun_.' He looked at the Heart Stone; the reflection in the glossy surface was, of course, Fawful. He looked at it from different angles; multiple Beans stared back. 'You're fussing over such a small problem. The Heart Stone shows what's in one's heart...and mine is blocked.' He sighed. 'But if you insist, I'd better destroy it.' He clenched his fist and brought dark energy up to his palm.

_'No!'_ the Chaos Heart cried. _'If you do that—'_

The dark energy covered the Heart Stone and sunk into it. The darkness swirled around inside for a moment...then disappeared. '...what?' Dimentio said, shocked.

The magician gasped as he was suddenly hit by a powerful shock of the Heart Stone's energy; while the Chaos Heart's was evil and charged with negative emotions, the Heart Stone's felt good and pure, containing only positive emotions. It burned like fire and pressed against his heart like a battering ram. The Chaos Heart screamed in his head; the noise was high, like a demon on helium. At the same time, visions blasted through Dimentio's mind: some were of people from Dimentio's past, like his brothers, his father, Rosabella, his mother. Other visions were of destruction and death, darkness and horrible, crushing despair. Dimentio knew what he was seeing: the former visions were from the depths of his own heart, and the latter ones were in the Chaos Heart's. His eyes were squinted shut and his arms were wrapped around his chest as he felt the energy pressing harder and harder on his heart...and on the barrier the Chaos Heart had put up. Visions continued to assault his mind and agonizing, stabbing pains exploded from his heart at every one. At the deepest, most locked away part of his heart, he saw one thing larger than the rest: the girl who, after all the pain and suffering he had gone from having a tyrannical family, being betrayed by Rosabella, losing his mother to her diseased and, later, to the Void, and having to betray the only people who had ever given him refuge, remained as the brightest and most important part of him: Mimi. Before, his former minion and creation; now, the person he loved more than anything in the world. She meant everything to him. Everything.

His eyes snapped open; the force of the energy against the Chaos Heart's defences was too strong to handle anymore. The Heart screaming peaked and the wall shattered completely. The air was sucked from his lungs and he stood, motionless, as the world spun around him. The love that he had held back from him for what seemed like an eternity came rushing back into his heart, and unlike the previous time, it came at full force. Also unlike the previous time, he felt no pain and suffering from it; all of the adoration and joy he had kept bottled up every time Mimi crossed his mind welled up inside of him like a pure, cleansing elixir. He fell to his knees and tipped over forward, his hands slamming onto the ground to stop his head. He was gasping for air and sweating, but his pained expression slowly grew into a smile. Tears fell down his face as he savoured every second that passed; his heart was alight with all of the things he couldn't believe he had sealed away. A pure, amazing goodness lit up his being; it was something he had been fighting his entire life.

'Mimi...' he gasped. 'You're back...in my heart again...I...' He shook with happiness. 'I love you...I...I love you so much...hahaha...haha...ha...'

His voice trailed off; his smile slowly transformed into a look of horror as he remembered what he had planted in the castle that Mimi was currently laying in. Suddenly, a wave of pure sadness and terror washed over him. He, like all of his enemies in the castle, knew what that was. Just as Bowser was heaving O'Chunks' unconscious, beaten body up to get him to safety, only for pure horror to cross his face, Dimentio knew. Just as Mario, Luigi, and Peach felt the wave and instantly began running to the castle's front door, he knew. Just as Fawful heaved Mimi up and ran to the bedroom window, Headgear thrusters powering up, he knew. He knew that the castle was going to be destroyed. He knew that there was no escape.

His eyes were wide and locked onto the castle. 'Mimi...Mimi!' he cried, his voice choking. '_NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!_'

He couldn't tear his eyes away as the castle exploded, buckled from the force, and collapsed in on itself.


	37. Chapter 37: Darkness Breeds Despair

Chapter 37: Darkness Breeds Despair

*Heart*

Fawful felt his heart racing along with Mimi's against his chest as he ran as fast as his legs could carry him. He could feel the dark energy thick in the air and knew he needed to get out of the room _now_. He had crossed the length of the room and his Headgear's rockets hummed with energy.

'Fawful!' Mimi screamed in terror. 'Fly now!'

The Bean jumped before his rockets turned on; he was halfway out the window when a loud roar exploded inside his eardrums. A huge wave of heat passed over him and his skin burned and stung as if he had been thrown into acidic fire. At the same time, a powerful shockwave knocked the wind out of his body, his gasp of pain abruptly cut off. The sound of shattering glass and cracking stone filled his ears and he could hear his own bones break inside of his body. His head was yanked painfully as his Headgear jerked forward; suddenly the world spun and he flew through the air, spiralling uncontrollably. Fawful yelled as Mimi flew from his grasp, falling limply to the ground below.

'MIMI!' he screamed, his voice nearly breaking altogether from the sheer volume of the noise. His cry continued as he fell as well, the ground spinning as he approached it. He slammed his eyes shut. A few seconds of falling passed and then he slammed against the hard earth with the force of a missile. His skull shattered like brittle glass and the resulting _crunch!_ was all he could hear. The metal from his Headgear dug into his head, bringing a stabbing agony along with the rest of his wounds. The impact of the crash made him bounce back up, limbs flailing, broken and dead, as he hit the ground again and rolled.

He came to a stop. He didn't move. He didn't breathe. He couldn't even feel anything. He was as good as dead...yet his heart still beat in his chest. Darkness spilled out of all of his wounds, stitching them back together, reconnecting bone to tendon to muscle to skin. The cracks in his bones disappeared, blood was rejuvenated in his blackened veins, and his crushed skull slowly crackled back into its normal size and shape, pushing the Headgear out and off of it. A few seconds of pain exploded through Fawful as his nervous system kicked in, but it soon disappeared as the Chaos Heart healed him completely. His clothes and glasses were even mended perfectly. He couldn't die with the Chaos Heart inside his chest...not until he wasted away to nothing.

He turned over on his stomach and slowly pulled his still-recovering body to its feet. He looked at his Headgear; the wonderful little machine that had survived so much was a complete wreck. Its glass dome was shattered and the metal that had held the base to the esophagus-like tube was bent and broken. The tube itself was punctured full of holes and leaked energy stabilizing fluid. One of the two rockets had been torn off completely, rocket fuel oozing out. The other wasn't in much better shape; it was twisted around. The worst part was the Headgear's head; both of its eyes were broken and black and the inside of its metal jaw had been skewered by its own teeth. It twitched, a depressing _bzzt, bzzt, bzzt!_ sounding from its circuits. After a few seconds, it shut down completely.

Fawful staggered. 'H...Headgear...' Even though it was just a machine, it was still horrible to see his own creation be utterly destroyed like that.

A sound brought him back to the scene at hand; a loud sound like that of crunching stone. He whirled around to look at Princess Peach's Castle; it was a mere shell of the magnificent building it had once been. Holes dotted the walls and roof, all of the windows had been broken, and the stained glass window of Peach herself on the central tower was even now shedding pieces. The sound came again; Fawful saw the castle sink and buckle. The explosion had come from the basement of the castle...it wasn't stable. He couldn't do anything as it swayed twice more, then finally collapsed.

The noise was ear-splitting; it fell in on itself, the stone bricks breaking themselves apart. The bridge leading to the front door broke into rubble, the moat rapidly being filled with the castle's remains. The point that the Beanish boy was focussed on, however, was the tower. In what seemed like slow motion, it fell. The tall, iconic castle tower, its giant window's remains still glinting like gems, sunk lower and lower, and as it sunk Fawful felt his heart sinking. This was a symbol; Princess Peach's Castle had fallen, and the rest of the world would follow very soon.

A gigantic crash brought a cloud of dust and rubble spewing out from what was left of the huge building. Fawful covered his eyes with his arm and squinted them shut. When it all died down, he looked again; the castle was gone. In its place was a huge pile of rocks. The Bean was speechless for several moments before he finally remembered who he had been holding onto as he had leapt out of the window. Frantically, he looked around; he found Mimi lying in a heap. 'MIMI!' he screamed again, hopping up and running as fast as he could towards her. He tripped and stumbled, but he made it to her side.

She looked awful. Her limbs were splayed out at unnatural angles, her green skin had become a charred black. Her hair was singed and dry, breaking as the girl tried to move in vain. Half of her face was practically gone, burnt and scarred. Her head was tilted at a gruesome angle, twitching as if trying to move all the way around but failing. Each twitch made a horrible _crack!_ sound. 'Nn...' she breathed weakly. 'Dnn...'

'M...Mimi!' Fawful couldn't stand it; he couldn't stand seeing her like this. His heart couldn't take it. It was a horrible, crushing feeling. He had never felt anything like it.

Dimentio was in complete shock. His eyes were like saucers as he stared at what he had turned Peach's Castle into. Broken, choked squeaks escaped his lips. 'No...n-no...it...it's not possible...I...' The full reality of the situation hit him hard in the chest: he had killed Mimi. There was no way she survived that. 'M...M...Mi...' Tears were falling down his cheeks as his heart convulsed. He threw his head down and buried his face in the dirt. He had done this. He had killed the one he loved. The thing he had been trying to do for so long was only giving him pain. It was unbearable...horrible, unbearable pain.

'Mimi...Mimi, have speaking!' Fawful cried desperately. 'Have the answering of Fawful! Please...please!' He shook her; she gave a weak cry of pain.

'D...Di...' Her eyes were glazed.

'Mimi...it is being me, Fawful!' the Bean told her, trying to fight back his sorrow.

'Di...Dim...ent...io...?' Tears were forming in Mimi's eyes.

'N...no, no!' Fawful shook his head. 'No, it is being Fawful, Fawful!'

'F...Fawful...?' Her eyes seemed to focus. 'Faw...ful...'

'Yes...yes Mimi, Fawful! It is being me!' He shook her despite her painful moans; he had no control over himself anymore.

'I...d...dying...' she choked.

'No!' the boy exclaimed. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his storage cube. He was pressing the buttons too hastily; he made incorrect selections. 'No, no, I am not wanting that!' he screamed hysterically at his invention. 'You device of s-stupid! STUPID!' He shook it angrily and pressed a few more buttons. A Life Shroom appeared in his hand. He put the cube away. 'Mimi, have eat!' he demanded. He put the Shroom up to her mouth. 'Eat...eat!' he yelled, forcing it against her mouth. 'EAT! PLEASE!' Mimi just stared at him; she made no effort to do anything more.

'Fawful...' she whispered faintly. Her breaths were getting more and more laboured and quiet, her eyes more and more dead. 'I...I need...to...a-ask...'

The young inventor clasped her hand and looked into her eyes; her head still twitched and cracked every second, but he knew she was looking at him. 'Yes, anything!'

'Is it wrong...that I...still love him...?'

'L...love who?' Fawful's heart felt like it was freezing solid.

'Dimen...tio...' the shape-shifter replied. She was fading away; Fawful could see it in her eyes. 'I...still love...Dim...en...' She stopped.

Fawful remained locked on her gaze. Her eyes were half closed but he knew they saw nothing. All the life had left Mimi's body. She was no longer with him. Dimentio had killed her.

_Dimentio had killed her..._

A spike of pain shot through his head; he clutched it and fell forward, his head hitting the ground hard. He groaned in agony; he could feel his heart breaking, chipping apart, a pressure building on his mind. 'N...no...Mi...mi...'

The two Chaos Heart vessels were in emotional torture. Their hearts were experiencing nothing but a cold, merciless pain. They squirmed where they knelt, the same girl occupying both of their minds. At the bottom of their hearts stirred an untapped darkness, shifting and swirling, savouring the pain the two of them felt.

_'I am your salvation...'_ it said. _'I am the darkness in your hearts...I am hate...I am rage...I am chaos.'_

They both heard it, and their hearts both spoke back without words. This was unparalleled anguish. They could feel the dark power growing, spreading. The power that they had both been utilizing for so long yet not fully experiencing. The complete scope of odium and fury that they had not wholly embraced. It was there, calling them.

_This power..._

It beckoned.

_I want...the power..._

It had been waiting for so long.

_The power to save me...from this torment._

_'Embrace me...let me into your hearts.'_

_Yes...come into my heart._

_Have the saving of me..._

_Help..._

To them, there was a moment of tense, otherworldly silence.

Two simultaneous, agonized screams filled the sky. Dimentio and Fawful let out their sorrows to the heavens and let the dark power of the Chaos Heart seep into their beings. Clouds of darkness covered their bodies, sinking into their skin. Fawful felt the darkness altering his clothing; his black body suit was becoming a hue of dark purple, his white shoes turning jet black. His cloak turned from red to purple and from yellow at the outlines to red, and the bottom of the cloak took on a jagged pattern. His hood turned completely gray and spiked and the buttons and chain holding his cloak on him became red. On the centre of his chest appeared a symbol: a black heart.

The screaming stopped. Dimentio and Fawful stayed stock still where they knelt, their hearts pounding. Slowly, they opened their eyes and stood up.

'Such power...' the magician sighed. His signature smile lit up his face. He snapped his fingers; a _crack!_ went through the air and a hole opened up in the sky, the remainder of his Inverse army piling out like the battalions of the Underwhere. 'Ahahahahaha...now I see.' His eyes glinted dangerously; the look in them was a level of insanity not seen before. 'The prophecies will be correct either way. All this time, all the conflict and strife between us has been leading the vessels of the Chaos Heart to one single, crushing point. It matters not whether I am the victor or Fawful is. Either way, darkness will pour over all worlds like a blanket.'

_'You have regained love,'_ the Chaos Heart noted. _'I know your emotions, Dimentio...yet even I can't fathom your mind at this moment. What course will you take?'_

Dimentio's smile was dark. 'I will finish what I have started.' He looked up into the sky, the sight of the Void filling him with a sadistic pleasure. The ground shook more powerfully than ever before. 'All worlds will be consumed...for the sake of those who have already fallen. My perfect world that I have dreamed of for three thousand years...will become a reality.'

Fawful's head had cleared. He could feel the Chaos Heart's power from his toes to his fingertips...and it felt so _good_. A wide, toothy grin spread across his face; Dark Fawful had returned. 'I HAVE _DARKNESS!_' he yelled to the heavens. A burst of power exploded from him, killing all the plant life around him. 'My enemies shall be fearing the name of Lord Fawful! HAHAHAHA_HA!_'

Dimentio's army of monsters was falling from the sky. No matter, there was no way they could stand up to him. He looked around the area; the Toads that had been outside the blast radius of the Dark Energy Bomb were going crazy, running around screaming for their mothers and proclaiming the end of the world.

The dark Bean's gaze froze; standing on a cliff overlooking the entire scene was Dimentio, the same dark energy surrounding him that currently surrounded Fawful. Suddenly, rage overtook his heart as he remembered Mimi's fate. 'Mimi...' A bloodthirsty snarl escaped his lips. 'I will have the avenging of you!' As an Inverse leapt at him he put his hand up and utterly vaporized it with darkness. Another tried a sneak attack from behind, only for Fawful to spin around and shoot a hole through its chest. He let loose a yell. 'DIMENTIO!' he hollered lividly. 'YOU WILL HAVE_ DEATH!_'

Fawful ran through the throngs of creatures, utterly destroying anything that got in his way. He jumped on one's head, turning it into a paste. He extended a coil of blackness that crushed one's chest, then used it as a whip to smash a group of five others into the dust. He covered himself in darkness and shot himself at a monster, going right through its stomach and spraying black gloop everywhere. The Void raged on in the sky, shaking the world again and again. The universe would end very soon, but Fawful couldn't care less. He was on a mission to destroy the one who had taken Mimi from him, and he was going to do so with a passion.

Two people suddenly appeared in front of him. 'Muh muh muh!' the far larger of the two laughed. 'You will be crushed!'

'You die here, boy,' the other said. 'Ha, ha, ha, ha!'

Fawful's enraged look deepened. 'Get out of the way of me!' he yelled. 'Or I will have the killing of you both!'

'Muh muh muh! You won't. I will kill.' Midbus cracked his knuckles. 'Goodbye...Lord Fawful.'

The angry Bean gritted his teeth. For so long, he had trusted Midbus. He had worked alongside him to take over the Mushroom Kingdom...he had battled Bowser with him at his right hand...he had revived him from the ice and brought him with him, and all Midbus did was betray him. All the trust he had put in the giant pig had been for nothing. 'Midbus...' Fawful muttered as his former minion came at him with a giant fist. He put his hands out in front of his body and grabbed Midbus' hand. The look of shock that came over his face was the most satisfying thing Fawful had yet seen. His eyes shot venom into Midbus', glowing red with fury. 'DIE!' he screamed. He forced energy up through his hands and into Midbus; the pig's howl faded into the air as he exploded into particles of dark energy.

Valex stepped back in surprise. He clenched his fists. 'You have no right to control the Chaos Heart's powers!' he shot.

Fawful eyed the Inverse. 'Valex,' he said. 'Since Fawful first had the meeting of you, he had always wanted to have the saying of something to the one who is you.'

'And?' the creature asked.

In the blink of an eye the Bean was in front of Valex, his fist ready to strike. 'Up shut,' he growled. Fawful brought his fist forward; the impact, empowered by dark energy, was enough to send Valex flying across the battlefield and into the base of the cliff Fawful was heading towards.

There were too many enemies to fight, he'd never get across the field in time. Summoning a very large amount of energy to his hand, he stuck his palm out; a gigantic blast of energy shot out of it, disintegrating just about every foe in his path. 'Now...DEAAAATH!' he screamed, and ran.

He had nearly covered the distance between him and the cliff when he stopped suddenly; he had stepped on something hard. Moving his foot, he looked down; on the ground at his feet was a large, pink, heart-shaped stone. He frowned and tried to pick it up; it sent an electric shock down his arm. He grimaced and, carefully this time, picked up the stone. As he looked into it, he could see Dimentio's face reflected off of the many facets of the gem. He also saw others: Cackletta and Mimi were there, and...everyone else he had travelled with as well. He didn't like it. He put it away in his storage cube.

'Well well well...' Fawful's head jerked up instantly. 'Your prowess with the Chaos Heart's powers is certainly impressive.' Dimentio had dropped down from the cliff, wearing a smart smile on his face.

'You!' the Bean spat furiously. 'You had the killing of Mimi!'

The jester's smile lessened. 'It was necessary,' he laughed all the same. 'She was an obstacle in my plan and had to be removed.' His expression turned sinister. 'As you are as well. While you walk the worlds, I cannot rest in peace. My dream of a perfect world will never be a reality.'

'You...you...GRAAAH!' Fawful ran at Dimentio, a fire burning in his eyes. 'FINK-RAAAAAAAT!' He fired a blast of energy at the magician that blew bigger hole in the cliff around the one Valex had left.

'Ahahahaha! Try again!' Dimentio laughed. He snapped his fingers and a spark of black magic appeared on his fingertip; he whipped his hand forward and small energy spheres flew at Fawful, who brought up a shield around himself, deflecting them away. He took to the air, showering Dimentio with a hail of small orbs. They met their marks; each made a tiny explosion upon impact. 'Aaaauh!' he yelled. 'Augh...ahahahaha!' Spinning around to face Fawful, he shot two blasts out at opposite sides. The Bean shot up into the air to avoid them, only for Dimentio to teleport up and snap his fingers, sending Fawful back down to both blasts' path using an explosion. The two attacks connected at the same time, burning the boy's skin.

Fawful landed on his two feet and shot two coils of darkness out of his hands, wrapping them around the jester's hands. 'Have pain, fink-rat!' he cried, smashing him into the ground. He threw Dimentio up into the air and whipped him around, sending him crashing into the cliff base. Fawful yanked him towards him and prepared to throw Dimentio around more; the jester planted his feet firmly on the ground and threw his hands up, sending a whip across the lines and flinging the Bean up with a sickening lurch. Fawful screamed in pain as the dark magician sent an electric shock down the whip and into the boy. He spasmed for a few seconds and the line dissipated.

Dimentio didn't waste Fawful's moment of vulnerability; he came down hard upon the young inventor, bringing his entire body weight against his stomach. Fawful wheezed and coughed, the wind knocked out of his body. The jester teleported a few feet away and let loose a burst of darkness at the Bean; it exploded upon contact. 'Ahahaha!' he cackled. 'Can you unravel my tricks?'

Fawful appeared behind Dimentio and put his hand on the jester's back; the other was clutching his chest. 'I say to you, YES!' he roared, and replicated Dimentio's attack at point-blank. The magician was sent flying, rolling head-over-heels along the ground and smashing his face into the dust. Dimentio staggered to his feet; his mask was heavily dented on the black side. 'Hahahahaha!' Fawful chortled. 'Fawful is laughing at you, like hearty chortling hyenas who have humour! Hahahahaha_**HAAK!**_'

Dimentio grabbed Fawful by the throat and lifted him up into the air, dark wisps curling off of his hand. 'And I return the sentiment, like a hilarity-deprived audience watching a video of a poor unsuspecting man being hit in the nether regions by a flying projectile!' He slammed Fawful against the ground and stomped on his chest. Smiling, he put his hand out and brought energy up to his palm. In response, the Bean grunted and did the same. They let the energy loose at simultaneously, causing a dark energy explosion to throw the jester up in the air and send the Bean flying across the ground. They picked themselves up quickly.

The world trembled at its core and a thunderous crack rang out through the air. The very sky shook with the might of the Void, engulfing all the world. 'Grr...' Fawful growled; Dimentio was too irritating.

'AHAHAHAHA!' The jester spread out his hands and looked to the sky. 'The Void has done its work! This world is on the verge of absolute collapse! The Mushroom World will be consumed! Ahahahahaha!'

Fawful clenched his fists and ran at the jester. 'DIMENTIOOOO!' he screamed. 'I HAVE FURYYYY!'

The jester snapped his fingers, an explosion throwing the boy into the air. The Bean flipped in the air and assaulted Dimentio with a hail of black blasts. The magician summoned a shield and then turned it into an orb; he threw it at Fawful and it burst on the boy's chest. He hit the ground and attacked with a large blast of power; it hit Dimentio square in the face, sending him flipping over himself and smashing off the ground.

Fawful was gasping for breath; he was wearing himself out, using so much power. 'Fink...rat...' he huffed.

Dimentio picked himself off the ground; his mask was completely totalled and his hat had been blown off his head exposing his black and white hair. He ripped the mask off his face, a mad grin taking up most of his expression. His bright, life-filled eye, once a brilliant yellow, now glowed with a red menace to match Fawful's. His second, grey eye remained just as dead and lifeless as before. 'You are indeed mighty, Fawful. Your power matches mine now, I dare say. Ah ha ha ha.' He looked to the sky as another gigantic tremor shook the planet; a horrible, grating noise echoed in their ears and a huge white tear appeared in the sky as the dimension began to fall apart under the Void's limitless hunger. Fawful's eyes were drawn to it: a completely blank scar in the sky without any substance at all to it. The Void was literally tearing his home apart.

'And so one of the last worlds meets its end,' Dimentio proclaimed. 'The Underwhere will follow, and then...my castle, located at the centre of the Void, will crumble! Fawful!' He pointed his finger at the Bean and Fawful looked down at him. 'Come to the place you briefly called home: my castle! Come, and we will settle old scores there. The future of the worlds will be decided.' He smiled and waggled his fingers. 'Ciao!'

'Dimentio! Have battle!' Fawful shrieked in ire. 'I WILL HAVE VENGANCE!' It was no use; the jester disappeared.

Fawful slumped, all of his energy suddenly depleted. Another horrible tearing sound brought another gash in the dimension. The Bean looked around; there were bodies everywhere. Lifeless, decaying goo bubbled throughout the field, the remains of the last of Dimentio's army. Innocent victims of slaughter lay bleeding, either dead or dying. Others were sitting on the ground, huddled up to their loved ones, crying for the existence they were leaving behind. Others still had simply laid down and passed away from the sheer, unimaginable shock of it all. For mere moments, the entire world was unified. The citizens of the Mushroom Kingdom, the servants from Bowser's lands, and every being spread throughout the universe was feeling the same thing: hopelessness. No one stood but Fawful; no one laughed or smiled or even spoke. The Mushroom World had laid down to die.

The world shook and the worst sound yet exploded from the sky, the Void rending the dimension like never before. A tear escaped Fawful's eye; the only world he had ever considered home was about to be wiped off the face of anything there ever was. 'I have sadness...' he whispered. '...time to be going.' Wiping away the tear, Fawful flipped out.

Dimentio reappeared close to the site of the Dark Energy Bomb's detonation. Lying on the ground was Mimi's lifeless corpse, mangled and burnt, but not enough to be unrecognizable. He sighed, sadness filling his heart. 'Oh Mimi...' he sighed. 'If only our paths had taken us down the same destiny. You really were...the one I loved more than anybody. The only person I had ever opened up to after _her_...' He clenched his fist as he remembered what Rosabella had done to him. It didn't matter anymore; the Overthere would be destroyed and the Nimbi that was now Rosabella would be swallowed by the darkness. 'But now...' His red eye shone. 'I can't turn back. The world that I've been fighting for for three thousand years will come to be. I won't let...your sacrifice be in vain. Ah ha ha...that's right, you sacrificed your life fighting against me. I can't let your death be in vain...haha.' He giggled. The smile that had appeared on his face left him; he wasn't happy right now. Not at all. 'At least I can do one thing for you now...' Extending his hand, he gathered darkness into a shape he remembered well: the rose he had given Mimi what seemed like a lifetime ago, right down to the brilliant white hue. He rested it on her chest. 'Enjoy your brief stay in the Underwhere...I imagine it doesn't discriminate anymore.'

As he got up and prepared to leave, he stopped. 'So...' he said aloud to himself. 'The Prognosticuses were true then.' He stole one final glance at Mimi's body. 'Darkness really does...breed despair.' A tear fell to the ground.

Dimentio, the Dark One of the Dark Prognosticus, left the dimension just in time to hear the terrifying blast that accompanied the destruction of a world...and just in time to witness all that existed tear itself to pieces.


	38. Chapter 38: The Eighth Door

Chapter 38: The Eighth Door

Mario

Mario ran. He ran faster than he had ever in his entire life, ignoring everything around him. He ignored the poor Toads running rampant through the streets of the town. He ignored the Void roaring in the sky, the same Void that had torn a huge white scar across the sky with its power. He ignored the now small band of Inverse monsters that terrorized everybody; he could still hear them back at Peach's Castle.

Or...back at what once was Peach's Castle.

The hero felt his heart convulse in his chest and the thought was instantly ejected from his mind. He couldn't tell if he was merely avoiding that fact or if his brain was currently giving him selective amnesia along with the adrenaline coursing through his body.

He barrelled through the gates leading to Shooting Star Summit. He didn't know for certain whether or not they would all be there, but the Summit was the place the Star Spirits would be, at the very least. They would be waiting for him. Mario was never one to try and be conceited, but he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt what their mindset must be at this point: if he was gone, then there was no hope. So many people had been destroyed...

_'Guys, c'mon!' Mario urged them. They hadn't been too far from the exit...but they only had seconds. 'Run faster!'_

_'I'm...I'm going as fast as I can, Bro!' Luigi gasped._

_'Mario, I...' Peach panted, exhausted. 'I can't run as fast as you!' She was lagging behind, but neither brother looked back; they needed to get to the door._

_Mere seconds had passed and it hadn't gone off. Maybe they had a chance! 'Faster!' the red plumber cried desperately._

_'I can't Mario,' the princess responded tiredly. I c—'_

_Her words were cut off; a deafening explosion tore through the air behind them, knocking the wind out of them and burning their skin from the sheer heat. Mario was lifted off his feet and thrown through the air, crashing headfirst through the castle's front doors. He struck the ground and his entire world flipped and cart wheeled, everything in his vision turning into unrecognizable blurs._

_He came to a stop and heard someone land beside him: tilting his head, he saw that it was his brother. 'L...Luigi!' he coughed._

_'G...Grambi...' he muttered. 'That really h-hurt...'_

_Mario understood; his entire body was in pain and he was sure he had broken a few bones; one of his arms was splayed awkwardly to the side. Using the arm that was still intact, he took out an Ultra Shroom and ate it in a few quick bites. A few seconds passed and he felt his strength returning, his bones repairing, and his burned skin disappearing, replaced with new skin. He got up and stumbled, falling on his back; even though his wounds were healed, his coordination wasn't; the Dark Energy Bomb's explosion had taken its toll on him._

_When he had regained his footing, he took out another Ultra Shroom for his brother. 'Luigi, have this,' he told his younger sibling. Luigi nodded and ate gratefully. The two were on their feet in a few moments._

_'That was crazy...' Luigi sighed, still a little wobbly. 'All right, now we've just gotta give a Mushroom to Peach and—'_

_'Peach!' Mario suddenly cried out. 'She's...' Their eyes were drawn to the castle; Peach hadn't been thrown through the door or a window. She was still inside the castle! Panic set in and both plumbers ran towards the castle._

_'We're coming!' Luigi called, trying to be reassuring._

_'Peach, don't worry!' Mario chimed in at the top of his lungs. 'We're going to—'_

_A loud rumble cut him off and the entire castle shook. He and his brother looked at each other. 'Bro...' Luigi whispered. 'What was—'_

_Another rumble and a crash rang out; the castle shifted. Another moment of paralyzing terror passed..._

_Then the castle fell, a gigantic boom filling their eardrums. Both of them screamed in horror, shielding their eyes from the cascade of dust and stone particles that washed over them. Mario yelled out the princess' name, but the cry was lost amongst the thunderous sound of stone and glass collapsing in on itself._

_The sound stopped and the wave of harmful powder subsided. Mario remained frozen in place; there was no way he could prepare himself for the sight he knew he had to see. Ten seconds passed...then he looked._

_The wonderful castle that to him had been a home away from home had ceased to exist; instead, a huge mass of stone, metal and glass dominated the area. Worst of all...he didn't see Peach._

_A cold revulsion gripped his heart and his eyes widened. 'P...Peach...' he breathed._

_'M...Mario...?' Luigi tapped his shoulder; the green hero's skin was pale and tears were tracking down his cheeks, but Mario felt no sympathy. Luigi had respected the princess incredibly, but his feelings for her had been no more than a close friendship. The painful knives in his heart didn't run half as deep as Mario's. 'Mario...?' Luigi asked again. 'Say something, Mario!'_

_'P...P...P...' He couldn't believe what he was seeing, he couldn't believe what had happened. Lying dead underneath the rubble...the one person he connected to so much...that he loved so much...she was..._

_Mario's stony, heroic composure, which had held strong in impossible situations, which had helped him survive and keep his mind strong, completely crumpled. He ran like a madman towards the remains of the castle. 'PEACH!' he screamed, his entire being filled with the most heartbreaking, soul-crushing emotional pain he had ever felt in his life. 'NO!'_

_'B-Bro!' Luigi cried after him. 'We can't stay here! The Void!'_

_Mario heard him, yet didn't. His mind was on one thing, the one thing he had never failed: he had to save Princess Peach. He grabbed the nearest stone, heaved it up, and threw it aside. 'I'll save you!' he yelled. 'Just...just like I always save you!' He grabbed another stone and hurled it away; it was a horribly hopeless effort, but this thought didn't occur to the hero. He needed to save Peach. He _would_ save Peach._

_Luigi came up to him. 'Mario, you can't do this!' he cried. 'We need to get out of here!'_

_'How can you say that?!' his brother demanded, enraged. 'Peach is in there! She needs our help!'_

_'No Bro, no she doesn't!' the younger sibling said, shaking his head and trying to hold back tears. 'She doesn't need to be saved anymore! Stop it!'_

_'I need to save her!' Mario grabbed yet another block of stone and threw it away. 'I always save her! Always! I...I've never failed! Never! I won't fail!'_

_'Mario, cut...cut it out!' Luigi grabbed his brother's shoulder, only for his hand to be angrily shoved off. 'You need to stop! The Void's going to get rid of us if we don't get out of here!'_

_'Not without Peach!' Mario growled firmly._

_'Mario, stop!' the green plumber demanded. He grabbed Mario and tugged hard; Mario struggled against him, yelling into the air. 'Listen to me Mario! Listen, I...just STOP!'_

_Luigi swung his fist and punched Mario on the side of his head. The red hero dropped the rock he was holding and fell over sideways. Mario laid on the ground for a few moments, silent. Luigi felt like apologizing...but he didn't. Mario needed that. Luigi offered him his hand and the older brother pulled himself off the ground. Tears were fresh in his eyes. 'I'm...sorry,' he said weakly._

_'Mario,' the younger one said again. 'We need to go. Merlon and the rest will be at Shooting Star Summit. It's the only place they could be.'_

Mario leaned against the side of the Summit, gasping for breath. He had never felt so weak in his life. He pulled himself together as well as he could and climbed the rest of the way.

They were all there. Merlon's whole family stood around the star symbol: Merle, his son, and Merlee, Merlow, and Merluvlee, his grandchildren. The sages of Flipside and Flopside were on the Toad Town fortune-teller's sides, talking fearfully in his ears. The seven Star Spirits, along with their Star Rod, floated around talking amongst themselves. The person he was most happy to see safe and sound was Rosalina, who clutched her wand close to her chest. Kamek's face was locked on the remains of Peach's Castle where he knew his king lay under the rubble.

'Mario!' The fortune-teller was the first to notice his arrival. 'Thank the Overthere you're alive!'

Mario grunted in response and fell over. Everyone scrambled to help him. 'Are you all right Mario?!' Eldstar asked, worried.

'I'm fine...' the plumber muttered, the words sounding distant and hollow in his ears. 'Everyone's here...Rosalina, you're all right?'

The princess of the stars nodded. 'I was saved by that red-haired girl...have you seen her?'

Mario shook his head. 'She's probably dead. At least she saved you.' The princess' look was crestfallen. 'We need to get out of here _now_. No questions asked.'

They all hesitated at the lack of heroes, but nodded in response. 'Let us depart to Flipside,' the dimension-between-dimensions' Merlon said. Merlon and Nolrem waved their hands in the air; 2D boxes appeared around everyone and they flipped out.

Mario was left alone; another tear had ripped itself into the skyline. As he looked at the world that had become his only dimensional home, his mind slowly sorted itself out. He had failed in saving the world. He had failed at being a hero. He wasn't so super after all...

His heart a cold pit in his chest, he took his red and white Return Pipe out of his pocket and held it above his head. Flipside was the only place he could go to now.

Fawful

Flipside. He had almost forgotten what it looked like. Being in Flipside made him feel somewhat disjointed, as if he was everywhere and nowhere at the same time. He didn't like it; it felt too much like home and too little like it at the same time. He supposed that's what it was like living in a dimension between dimensions. It wasn't really _real_, but it existed somewhere in the dimensional mess of existence anyway.

He looked at the seven colourful doors around him; he was on Flipside Tower. He decided to open one: behind the door was a huge expanse of whiteness. He stuck his head in, tapped his foot on the "floor." In the distance were clusters of lifeless black...things. He closed the door and moved onto the second one. Same thing. All seven doors led to a world of nothingness. He wondered if the Mushroom World and the surrounding galaxies had been the last regular dimension to be annihilated. He sighed; it didn't matter now. His home was gone.

He walked to one of the ends of the tower and saw a _completely_ two-dimensional square floating in the air; it had a red triangle on it pointing down. He pressed it; the square disappeared and another still completely two-dimensional square appeared; it was white with a black line down the middle. It opened up to reveal...an elevator. Fawful frowned and stepped inside; it was the same size as a regular three-dimensional one. He felt the elevator going down, then sideways, and then down again. It stopped after a couple of seconds and opened; he stepped out.

Merlon, Merlon, and Nolrem were in front of Flipside's Merlon's house, accompanied by what looked like several of Toad Town's Merlon's family members, the seven Star Spirits Kamek, and Princess Rosalina. They all turned as they heard the elevator open. 'Fawful!' Toad Town-Merlon exclaimed. 'We thought you were...hm. You've...changed.'

Fawful didn't reply, he just walked over to them. He looked straight up into the air, everyone else following suit. Like the Mushroom World, the Void had blocked out what Flip- and Flopside could call a sky in its entirety. The world didn't have much time. 'We have little time,' Nolrem said to them, putting the thought into words.

'Do you know how many dimensions still exist?' Merlow asked. He was small and probably no older than thirteen, but he was handling the situation surprisingly well.

Flipside-Merlon bit his lip behind his hood. 'I...I believe that there are only three left.'

'...three? How do you know that?' Merluvlee demanded.

'This one, the Underwhere and Overthere, and Castle Dimentio,' he replied. 'I don't believe any regular dimensions are left. You were all very lucky to be on the furthermost edge of the Void's reach.

'Jeez...' Merlee said, tugging her cloak. Fawful found himself wondering why _all_ of Merlon's relatives wore the same kind of clothes.

'What happened to the Cobalt Star and Beanstar?' Muskular asked.

Fawful reached into his dark cape and pulled out his storage cube. Pressing a few buttons brought him to the inventory and a few more made the two objects appear. 'Spirits of Stars,' the Bean said. 'I am wishing for the Beanstar to have awakeness.'

The Star Rod glowed for a moment and the Beanstar woke up without warning. It flew around, a smile on its face, looking at all of the people around it. It make Fawful sick.

'Oh!' Fawful remembered something. He pressed a few more buttons and the Heart Stone appeared in his hands. 'You will be needing this!'

'You found it!' The fortune-teller was grinning under his hood. 'Fantastic!' He took the stone from Fawful's hands.

'How will we create the Purity Heart?' Rosalina asked.

'Simply concentrate your magic on one area and think of the most powerful love you have ever felt. The Purity Heart runs on nothing but love's power. Things are grim...but the fates of all worlds depend on it.' Flipside's Merlon shook his head and put on a determined face.

They all nodded. Kamek and Rosalina pointed their wands at one point in the air. Merlon, the Heart Stone in his hand, and his family put their hands out. Nolrem grabbed the Cobalt Star and Merlon grabbed the Beanstar. Nolrem pointed his free hand at the spot. 'Beanstar,' the Flipside sage whispered. 'I wish for you to become energy in my palms.' The Beanstar nodded and disappeared, leaving Merlon's hands glowing with magical power. They all closed their eyes and each sent shining beams of magic out at the spot in the air, a light glowing brightly. Fawful wasn't interested in the process at all, but he found comfort in knowing that all of their work wasn't for nothing. The Purity Heart _was_ going to be created after all. He stepped into Merlon's house.

To Fawful's surprise, he saw Mario sitting tiredly on a chair in the room. He held the Light Prognosticus in his hands and was reading a passage. 'Red mustache?' the Bean said in disbelief. 'You had the surviving?'

Mario looked up and a chill went through Fawful's body; the always-present determination that shone in the hero's eyes was completely gone, replaced with a sapped lifelessness. 'Yeah...I survived.' His eyes travelled back to the book.

Fawful walked across the room and brought up another chair. The silence was deafening; he could hear the ticking of a clock in the background. 'They are having the creating of the Purity Heart,' he said. 'We are having closeness to the finale.' Mario just kept reading. 'You should begin to have readiness,' he continued. 'Dimentio will have waiting for the ones who are us.'

'No,' Mario said. 'He'll be waiting for you.'

The Beanish boy had heard many ridiculous things in his life, but this took the cake; was Mario _quitting?_ 'But...'

The plumber sighed. 'You know, I never really took notice of this line.' He showed it to Fawful.

'_"Darkness breeds despair"_...' he read, feeling cold; he remembered saying that to the Void what seemed like a long time ago. The fact that it had actually appeared in the Prognosticuses...

'Everyone's gone,' Mario told Fawful. 'I'm the last one. You and I.' Fawful detected a horrible self-loathing in the plumber's voice. 'When it _shouldn't_ be. I don't deserve this.'

'Mustache...' Fawful muttered. 'Why do you have stop now?'

'Because it's useless. There's nothing I can do. I've already failed. I'm not Super Mario. I'm just Mario Mario, your regular Brooklyn carpenter-turned-plumber. I can't believe I forgot that after all this time in the Mushroom Kingdom.' He paused for a moment, then laughed dryly. 'Haha. "Mario Mario." What a joke.' He closed the book and set it on a table. He turned his chair around to face away from the door and leaned back.

Fawful frowned and stood up. He couldn't believe it: Mario, one of the two people who had wiped Cackletta's very soul from existence, one of the people who had defeated him, was admitting defeat. The one person he had always known would come to the aid of others and fight to the bitter end wasn't fighting anymore. Super Mario, the Mushroom Kingdom's greatest hero, had given up. 'Hmph...' Fawful spat. 'I have disappointment.' He walked out of the room, slamming the door shut behind him.

The Purity Heart really was incredible. A huge, shifting heart, gold in colour, it spun in the air in a very similar manner to the Chaos Heart. Indeed, it was the Chaos Heart's opposite in every way; whereas the Chaos Heart gave off a feeling of darkness and destruction, the Purity Heart gave off a feeling of love and, yes, purity. It was because of this that Fawful was standing much farther away from it than everybody else.

'Pah...' he muttered, tugging at his chest. 'It gives Fawful the discomfort!' He coughed. 'Does anyone have deadness?'

'No, everyone's alive,' Nolrem answered. 'Most of Merlon's relatives are exhausted though, and Merle's unconscious. Kamek's wand shattered just as we finished and the Cobalt Star doesn't give off energy anymore. The Star Spirits and their Star Rod are just fine though. I imagine it still grants wishes.'

Fawful nodded. 'I have approval.' He took out his storage cube and put the Purity Heart inside it.

'It is simply amazing, the things your inventions can do,' Flipside's Merlon complimented.

The Bean put the cube away. 'I will have going now.'

'Hm? What about Mario?' Merlon asked.

'Be asking him yourself,' Fawful replied darkly. 'Nolrem, you must have the guiding of me to the door which is leading to the Castle of Dimentio.'

'Is it not possible to simply flip the dimensions and arrive there that way?' Nolrem asked.

Fawful allowed himself his trademark grin. 'Yes,' he answered, 'but Fawful has thinking that it would have more dramaticness if he arrived in the way of that.'

Flopside's sage sighed. 'You villains...'

As he began to walk, he stopped. 'Nolrem, have the meeting of me there,' he told the sage. 'Fawful has...a wish that he is wanting to be granted.'

_Mimi_

Mimi was tired. After everything she had gone through, she was simply tired. Her body was exhausted, her soul was exhausted, her heart was exhausted. All the drama, all the pain, all the heartache...it had left her drained in every sense of the word.

_That doesn't matter now,_ she told herself as a tremor shook the rocky world. _It'll all be over soon._ She looked around her; at least she wasn't alone. Blumiere, Timpani, O'Chunks, Peach, Nastasia, Bowser...they had all formed a circle on the floor. Mimi found the floor uncomfortable, but what could you expect sitting on the stone surface of Queen Jaydes' temple?

'It's almost the end...' Timpani muttered. 'I'm...I'm scared.'

Blumiere hugged her tightly. 'Don't worry,' he told her. 'It'll be painless.'

'But I don't want to just _disappear!_' she cried.

'Aye...tha Count's right, lass,' O'Chunks told her. 'Yeh shouldn't be afraid. Our time's come. We should jus' a'cept it.' Timpani sniffled.

'At least we're together,' Peach said.

'Those plumbers aren't here,' Bowser reminded her. 'Neither's that wimpy Bean.'

'Which means they're still alive,' Blumiere told them. 'And while one of us lives, there's a chance. Sammer's Kingdom was revived in the end after the Chaos Heart was destroyed and the Void closed. There's still a chance.'

Mimi's legs were propped up tightly against her chest and she was again reminded of Jaydes' generosity; if it hadn't been for her magic she would be a Shayde and have no legs to prop up. There were no Shaydes in the Underwhere now, and probably no Nimbis in the Overthere. _There's still a chance..._ Her red eyes glistened with tears; for her to live, Dimentio would have to die. What a cruel fate...

Suddenly, a light flickered in the centre of the circle they made; a projection of Fawful appeared. 'Whoa!' Bowser exclaimed. 'Hey...that's his Dark form!'

'So...' Blumiere breathed. 'He's succumbed to the Chaos Heart after all...'

The Fawful projection looked around for a bit; apparently they couldn't be seen by him. _'Fawful is having a message,'_ he said to the air. _'The Purity Heart has creation...Fawful had the finding of the Heart Stone and Merlon and the others had the surviving. Fawful is close to the battle of finalness, so...he is just wanting to tell you this information of usefulness.'_ He looked around again and another tremor shook the Underwhere. _'If...Fawful has the failing, then he will never have the seeing of you because the Underwhere will no longer have existence. So...Fawful would just like to have saying...'_ For a moment, his eyes met Mimi's and she could swear he knew he was looking at her. _'Fawful will try to have the saving of you. Don't have worry. If he is not, then...goodbye forever.'_ Mimi saw what looked like a tear forming in one of his eyes. _'That...is all.'_

'Oh Fawfie...' the shape-shifter whispered sadly. 'I'm sorry...for breaking your heart in the end.'

The apparition disappeared.

Fawful

Fawful stood before the colossal door, black as night. He knew just where it led: straight to Dimentio's stronghold. He clenched his fists; he and Dimentio had butted heads a lot, with all of their confrontations ending in a stalemate. It was too much. Their score would be settled now, finally...and depending on the victor the worlds would either be saved or perish.

_'That is unless you decide to follow Dimentio's path...'_ the Chaos Heart said.

He picked at the skin on his face; the veins had travelled up halfway across his cheeks. If the Chaos Heart wasn't completed soon, he would die.

'Hey, kid!' It was Kamek; the Magikoopa came running towards him, huffing and puffing. 'Haah...haah...I am...way too...old for this!' he gasped.

'Heh,' Fawful chuckled. 'I have agreement, nanny.'

'I am not Bowser's NANNY!' he roared. 'Jeez, you come to see a guy off and all he does is insult you!'

'Pff...' Fawful snickered.

Kamek sighed. 'Listen, I just wanna get this off my chest, okay?' He took a breath. 'I think you've done a pretty good job, kid. You've exceeded my expectations. Now stop trying to kill me, you might actually win next time.'

Fawful nodded. 'Thanking you.'

'More and more like a hero each day, huh kid?' He stretched his back. 'Well...be careful, all right? And don't let that thing,' he added, jabbing his chest, 'get to your head. Or heart, I should say. The last thing we need is a megalomaniac Bean destroying all worlds and making a new one.'

The Bean nodded again, this time with a firm look on his face. 'You have the word of mine,' he told the old Koopa.

'Prove me wrong about your word, then,' Kamek replied.

Fawful smiled one last time, savouring the muscle movements; he imagined it would be the last time he smiled in a long time. Turning around, he clenched his fists and took a deep breath. This was the point of no return. He exhaled and pushed the huge door open.

Castle Dimentio awaited him once more.


	39. Chapter 39: Deletion

Chapter 39: Deletion

Mario

Mario sat in his chair in Merlon's house; another tremor shook Flipside and his mind turned to how much time the dimension had left. Not much, he imagined. The Void was almost done its work. Not that he cared. Everything he had fought for was meaningless. No matter what he did, Dimentio was going to win. There was no hope. He just couldn't cut it anymore. He held a Fire Flower in his hand; a plant as big as his whole hand, its head white with a yellow ring around it and a red ring around the yellow one. Two black beady eyes stared back at him from the centre of the plant's head. He tugged at one of the leaves extending from the stem; it broke off, withering and turning to ash. He wondered why a _Fire_ Flower would need leaves anyway, as leaves stored _water_ as well as the other things necessary for flowers to make food for themselves.

He heard the door open and steps sounding, signalling someone's entrance. 'Mario,' Flipside's Merlon called. 'Fawful has gone on his way to Castle Bleck.' Mario didn't respond. 'I...I highly recommend that you follow him.'

The plumber paused for a couple of seconds and then tugged on the other leaf. 'A Fire Flower...' he muttered. 'I remember when these things were actually useful.' He tossed it aside; it fell to the floor without a sound.

'Mario, you must go with Fawful!' Merlon told him. 'You _need_ to!'

'Why?' Mario turned his chair around and looked Merlon in the eyes. 'What good could I do?'

'Wh..._what good?_' he sputtered. 'By Grambi's beard, man, what in the worlds has gotten into you? You're _Super Mario!_ The Mushroom Kingdom's greatest hero! What happened to your bravery?'

Anger flared up in Mario; he grabbed the Light Prognosticus and threw the tome across the room at the sage. 'What bravery?' he yelled, furious. 'There's never BEEN any bravery!'

'Have you gone mad?' the prophet roared; Mario could detect panic in his voice.

'What makes bravery?' the red-clad man asked. 'Gallivanting through a kingdom I've never seen before in search of a princess I've never met? Collecting crystals and battling an ancient demon? Going up against an army of aliens? Saving the universe, or even the multiverse?' He crossed his arms. 'Did you know throughout all of that I've never once been afraid? Not once. I just pressed forward and did it. It never once occurred to me that I could be seriously hurt or even die. It never once occurred to me that I _should_ be feeling afraid.' He shook his head. 'That's not bravery. That's just stupidity.' His heart panged with sadness and he looked away from the shaman. 'Everyone was brave, except me. They were afraid, but they pressed on, knowing what they were doing was right. They faced their fears. That was bravery. Mimi, Blumiere, Nastasia, Peach, L...Luigi...'

There was a moment of silence. 'You have been tight-lipped about him,' Merlon said. 'What occurred during the Mushroom World's final moments? Where is your brother?'

Mario shook his head again; that was something he hated thinking about.

_The Mario Brothers ran for their lives towards the town as the Void raged in the sky. Mario was shaking his head furiously as he forced himself not to think of what he was abandoning; he was reliving Sammer's Kingdom's destruction in his head, and he remembered the pure horror that had been on everyone's faces. It was happening now, only this time it was to his own home._

Don't think about that..._ he thought. He forced the thought from his mind._

_'Ah, bro!' Luigi cried as he fell to the ground; an Inverse had grabbed onto him from behind._

_'Luigi!' Mario ripped the monster off his brother and took it down with his Ultra Hammer, then helped his brother to his feet. 'C'mon, we have no time to lose.'_

_'Ack!' The green hero pointed behind Mario; he spun around to see more Inverses approaching them. They had formed a circle around the Bros., growling...and smiling, as if some sort of sentience had managed to make its way into their heads. More were coming, as if the entirety of the Inverse army knew they needed to take the two of them out. They both looked around; there wasn't anywhere to run. 'This...there's nowhere to go!' the green brother lamented._

_'We'll...we'll think of something...' Mario told him._

_'...' Luigi gulped. 'Bro...I'm...I'm scared...'_

_Mario nodded in response. 'It'll be okay Luigi. It'll be okay.' He continued to look for an opening._

_'You know...I've been scared a lot,' the younger one said. 'I'm still scared...but I think I've got it.'_

_Mario looked at him quizzically, while not keeping his eyes off the band of monsters. 'What are you talking about?'_

_'You've always done so much, bro...you're so brave. That's why...you need to live. That's what I gotta do: make sure you live.'_

_A chill went through Mario. 'What're you—'_

_He cried out as Luigi kicked his feet out from under him; he hit the ground. 'You need to live, bro! You're Super Mario!'_

_'Stop, Luigi, no!' he yelled. 'You can't do this!'_

_Luigi grabbed onto Mario's legs. 'You can do it Mario. I know you can...from one Mario Brother to the other!' He spun Mario around and around; soon the world became unrecognizable. 'Don't forget me...bro!'_

_'LUIGIIIIIII!' he screamed as his whole body was being shaken from being hurled around in circles. 'STOOOOOPPPP!' Luigi let go of Mario's legs; the plumber was sent hurtling through the air, the feeling of free-falling taking over._

_Luigi saw his brother fly and he smiled. Then he brought his attention to the mob and took out his Ultra Hammer, grasping the large handle tightly; there was no way he was surviving this alone, especially not with the Void this close to destroying the world, but he might as well go out fighting. 'Bring it on!' he challenged, a new vigour surging through his body. 'It's Weegee time! RAAAAAAUGH!' With that, he ran into the crowd._

'That was one of the last things I heard him say,' Mario told Merlon sadly. '"I'm scared." He's always been the "scardy-cat" of the family...but I think he was the bravest one of us all. He should be here, not me.'

'Luigi gave up his life to save _you_, Mario,' the shaman said firmly. 'If you let his sacrifice be in vain...then my disappointment will be too much to be expressed.' With that, he closed the door.

Mario sat alone for a few minutes. _You can do it Mario. I know you can...from one Mario Brother to the other!_ He buried his face in his hands. _Hmph...I have disappointment._ He grabbed another book and threw it at the wall. 'This is stupid...' he muttered. 'I...everyone I've let down...how can I go on, knowing how things will end...?'

Why had he fought before? Was it to save Peach, the woman he loved? No...he hadn't even met her when he had saved her the first time. It wasn't for anyone in particular. It was just because...it was the right thing to do. The thing he fought for...

_It was for a better tomorrow..._ His voice echoed in his head.

The Void roared.

Fawful

The first thing he noticed about the castle was that it looked completely different from when he had last seen it.

The semi-familiar completely black castle was gone, in favour of a more traditional, normal-looking one. Grey stone covered the walls and the doors were made of golden metal. The torches, which had before given off pure black fire, were now lit with regular flames that gave off real light. He felt it was...softer, in a way. More fit for people to live in than the old Castle Bleck had been.

He looked down at his feet; the walkway leading to the castle was still pitch black and reflected his image perfectly. Or, it _would_ have reflected his image had his image not been replaced by Dimentio's. His eyes went back up to the castle; this was it. No turning back.

The hallways were completely empty. Not a single creature walked the halls, not one thing leapt out to attack him. The Inverse had been exhausted. Midbus was dead. Grubba and Doopliss were nowhere to be seen. All he heard were his footsteps, heavily muffled on the rugs that adorned the floors.

He heard the doors open behind him and spun around; standing in the doorway, gasping for breath and staring right at him was Mario. 'You!' Fawful exclaimed.

The plumber took a few more breaths and coughed. Clearing his throat, he walked up to Fawful. 'Yeah...' he said, his voice quiet. 'Me.'

'I thought...Fawful had the thinking that you had given up!' the Bean cried. 'Why is it that you are here suddenly?'

Mario's expression was the same as before; melancholic. However, it had...something else in it. Determination. Purpose. A drive. 'I've come to fight. I'm not going to sit out.'

'Pff...' The Bean crossed his arms. 'Why the changing of your mind, red mustache of fink-ratishness.' He scowled. 'You had the giving up! Why bother showing the face of yours to Fawful after _that?_'

The man frowned. 'Ever since you came back, Fawful,' he told the Bean, 'everything's gone completely insane. Bowser, Luigi, and Peach were all kidnapped, I was nearly killed, and then the Void was opened again. Then...' He sighed. 'Everything slipped away. Peach...my brother...everyone I ever knew. My entire home is gone. _Both _of my homes are gone. Soon, this castle will be the only thing left. It'll just be Dimentio and whoever's left to either serve or oppose him. Everything's fallen apart...and I've realized that I'm not who I thought I was. Super Mario...I thought I could do it again, but I can't. I've fallen short.' He gulped and clenched his fists. 'But that's not it. I could still pick myself up from making mistakes. Everyone fails. It's that...I've never felt this kind of loss before.'

Fawful's irritated demeanour began to disappear; he had never seen this side of the hero before. 'A feeling of crushing...' he muttered, remembering the losses he had suffered over the years, how the only two people he had ever cared about had been killed.

'A hopeless sensation...that's what it's like. I still feel the pain. But...I can't sit back and let the worlds die!' He pumped his fist. 'Because I cherish life too much for Dimentio to wipe out what's left of it! That's why I need to fight, no matter how sad I am.'

The Bean stared at the man, shocked at first, but then grinned. 'Yesing...that is sounding much more like the one who is you, red mustache.'

'Besides...even if the people we lost end up in the aftergame forever, destroying the Chaos Heart will close the Void. We still have a chance. We can still make a difference.'

One word in the sentence echoed in Fawful's mind: _we_. The full scope of how much things had changed hit him hard with a new level of force. Here he was, getting ready to battle an enemy he used to consider an ally, alongside an ally he used to consider an enemy. He, a former villain, was trekking through a foreign citadel as a hero on an insane quest to save all worlds. The very thing he was saving was one he had aspired to conquer not too long ago. The most unbelievable thing was the fact that he was on the same side as the infamous Super Mario, who he would have gladly blasted the life out of before. Mario killed Cackletta, forced him into exile, made him live in the sewers, then killed _him_, and tried foiling his revenge plans. Everything the plumber did made Fawful hate him more and more, yet...here they were, exchanging words of confidence before a battle they would fight together. The strange thing about it all was...Fawful actually felt _comforted_. He could think of no person he would rather have on his side than Mario at the moment; even though he had done so many things to Fawful, and Fawful had done so many things to him, they had a bond of camaraderie only this sort of situation could create between them. His mind drifted again to villainy in general; he still didn't know the reasons behind it all...but that didn't matter to him now, suddenly. All that mattered was what was present and concrete: their common enemy, Dimentio.

'Red mustache,' he said suddenly. 'We should have going.' He spun around; hearing Mario's footsteps approaching, he waited until they were side-by-side and they both made their way across the hall. 'Hmm...' Fawful sighed. 'Mustache. I have realization that we might not have the exchanging of words after the time that is this, so...I would like to have say.' He cleared his throat; how to express his feelings for his greatest enemy at the moment? 'I will never, ever have the liking of you. Ever.'

'...uh...' Mario responded, baffled.

'However...I am also having the respect for you.' He looked sideways while walking. 'You have given me a perspective of newness. You have showed me that there are sides of many to a situation. And...' This was the hard part. '...thank you with muchness...for being at the side of mine now. You are an ally of greatness.' He hated looking like this in front of Mario; despite his best attempts to conceal it, fear had leeched into his expression. He had been given enough power to level cities and he was still a scared little boy.

The man blinked, surprised. Slowly, he smiled. 'Thank you,' he replied, 'for not killing me throughout this adventure. You've impressed me.'

'Tnn...don't have mention.'

They reached the door and gave each other one last look; their faces were determined and ready for anything. '...let's-a go,' Mario said; it made Fawful sad, the way it was spoken: quietly and low, devoid of enthusiasm. They opened the door.

They suddenly knew that they had reached a room of importance: it was completely black. The walls, the floor, the ceiling, the torch flames, everything was completely black. The Void could be seen through several windows lining the sides, giving a bizarre kind of light to the room. It looked exactly like Castle Bleck had before Dimentio had renovated it.

'Well well well,' a voice called. 'What have we here? S'a couple o' lil shrimpos, waltzin' 'round our castle! Hyuk hyuk hyuk!' The heavy Southern accent chuckled away as Grubba and Doopliss approached. 'Gonzales and the lil green bean! Long time no see fellers.' He had a smug smile on his face, his eyes glinting with greed behind his sunglasses. 'How's yer _slowly waning existence_ workin' fer ya?' He pronounced the words slowly and deliberately, an act of rubbing salt in an open wound.

'You...' Mario clenched his fists. 'Do you know no limit, Grubba? How far will you go?'

'S'far as I need ta!' the Clubba snorted. 'What, y'think I even _care_ 'bout anyone else? All m'life it's been me, me, me, an' that's how it's gonna stay! I was a stinkin' _countryman,_ fer Grambi's sake! Poor as dirt an' filthier! Why do ya think I got inta fightin' in the Glitz Pit? Ta get rich! Why do ya think I went an' slurped up all them fighters' energy? Ta keep my ultra-young, ultra-fit bod! Me, me, ME!' He pounded his fists together. 'An' Dimentio's gonna give me everything I want. Money, power, fame, muscles...everything! So no, _Mario_, I ain't got no limit!'

'You're a slime ball Grubba,' the plumber growled.

'Myeh,' the minion shrugged. 'Whatever gets me what I want.'

The two heroes' eyes travelled to Doopliss; his face was determined and ready to fight...but it wasn't real. The Duplighost was afraid, and he was confused. 'Doopliss!' Mario pleaded. 'You don't need to do this!'

'Sh...shut up!' he shot. 'Yes I do!'

'_Why?_ What's the _point?_'

'I...' Doopliss gulped. 'Just shut up.'

Grubba glanced sideways at his ally, then shrugged again. 'Welp, time ta fight fer yer lives boys!' He snapped his fingers and disappeared into a shroud of darkness, emerging as the blackened Macho Grubba. 'Cuz I ain't holdin' back now. All or nothin'!'

Mario looked at his foe. 'All or nothing...' he repeated. 'GRUBBAAAA!' He ran full tilt at the man, who slammed his fists down upon the ground. The hero slid across the ground and underneath Grubba's legs, hopping up and stomping on his head.

Fawful didn't wait; he ran into Doopliss with the force of an angry bull, crashing into the wall. The spirit cried out in pain, then turned into black liquid and reformed, free. 'Fink-rat!' the Bean yelled. 'You are in the way of me!'

'What do you think my plan is?' the ghost shouted back. He put out an invisible hand and blew Fawful off his feet with a dark blast. The boy flipped around and returned the attack, then jumped up and forced Doopliss against the ground with a shockwave, coming down on his head. The sheeted minion flung his head up and transformed into what looked like a gigantic, mutant Swooper. The Bean yelped as two three-toed feet wrapped around his shoulders and forced him against the wall, crushing his joints.

'F...fink-rat...' Fawful groaned as his shoulders were slowly being crunched.

Mutant-Swooper-Doopliss said nothing in response, preferring to shriek at the top of his lungs. Fawful opened his mouth and blew Doopliss off of him with dark energy. The Swooper-thing crawled along the ground, convulsing, while the Bean waved his hand in front of his mouth; his tongue was practically on fire. A poof of purple smoke brought Doopliss back to his regular form; the Duplighost shot through the air, spiralling, and hit Fawful in the chest.

'C'mere you lil piggy!' Grubba roared as Mario ran circles around him. The plumber jumped up and kicked the Clubba's face, then hit the ground and sent his fist against his stomach. 'Haugh!' the minion hacked; Mario's punch lacked no more lustre than before. Unfortunately, this wasn't enough; Grubba quickly recovered, grabbed Mario, and whipped him up at the ceiling. The red-clad man flipped around and kicked off of it, spinning as he fell and came crashing down upon his head.

'I don't think you'll ever beat me,' Mario told Grubba matter-of-factly.

'Think again, ya shrimp!' the Clubba growled. 'I'm the one here with the biggest, baddest bod!'

Mario threw fire from his palms, burning Grubba's skin. He hopped to the side, avoiding the man's huge fists, then hopped and ran up his arm, swirling around once he touched his shoulder and flamed the minion's huge hand. He toppled off once Grubba lurched in pain, hitting the ground very ungracefully on his back. The hero flipped over onto his feet and leaped up high; Grubba grabbed him out of the air and flicked him up, punching him as he fell. Mario's world spun; he couldn't tell his left from his right. 'Urngh...' he groaned.

'I'll tear ya inside out, Gonzales!' the Clubba bellowed, enraged. 'WAUGH!' This scream was caused by a very large Piranha Plant-esque thing flying into him. Fawful plucked Mario off the ground and flew over to a corner.

'Have wait here,' the Bean told him.

Piranha Plant-Doopliss snarled and lunged at Fawful, while Grubba hopped up and tried to crush him; the Bean grinned and spun around flinging Doopliss up under Grubba headfirst while at the same time dodging them both. A satisfying _THUD!_ signalled his successful plan; a poof of purple smoke turned Doopliss back to normal, but didn't fix the problem of being underneath a very large and heavy Grubba. 'I have hilarity!' Fawful chortled. 'I am chortling at you, like many babies that have laughter!'

'You little piece of _dirt_,' the much larger minion snarled, his tone completely diminishing his accent. He pulled himself off the floor and ran at the Bean, who put his hands out nonchalantly; Grubba was no match for his newfound might.

Fawful's eyes widened as Grubba smashed him into the wall, waves of pain exploding throughout his body; he _would_ have been no match, but Dimentio had given him new power too. The Bean made a _pop_ as a small burst of energy was released, then kicked off the wall when Grubba loosened his grip and head butted the minion in the stomach; Grubba's yell of agony resonated throughout the room. Fawful quickly bounced off the ground and blasted Doopliss while his guard was down; the Duplighost growled and flew up, conjuring balls of black flame. Fawful ducked and weaved, feeling the heat wash over him when each one hit the ground; he grabbed one in his fist and threw it back.

'Grh...' Doopliss groaned. 'You're t-too strong...'

Mario walked up and studied the ghost. 'You're scared,' he noted.

'I am not scared!' Doopliss squeaked, then withdrew.

The plumber crossed his arms. 'Why do you fight with Dimentio? Why are you with him? What'll you gain from anything he accomplishes?'

'I...I'll...' The Duplighost was tripping on his own words. 'I'll...!' A crestfallen look stole over his face. 'I...I don't know...' He shivered. 'All I wanted was...revenge, yeah, on you...and just to cause mischief...but I don't know!' He hit his forehead in frustration. 'We've _killed_ people! We've _erased them from existence!_ I didn't...I didn't sign up for this!'

'Then you see exactly what we've seen for a long time.' Mario sighed. 'Let us pass.'

'Oh I don't be thinkin' so,' whispered a malicious voice from behind.

Grubba brought his fists down with all the force he could muster, crushing bones and popping veins. Mario gasped as two huge hands wrapped around his body and began squeezing the life out of him. 'Red mustache!' Fawful cried, preparing to attack. Grubba kicked the Bean with all his might into a wall.

'You've hit a wall Gonzales!' Grubba laughed. 'All this time an' you forgot ta check your back!' He squeezed harder and harder. 'All that time I spent locked away for my crimes...' he growled. 'It's all because a' you! An' now I'm gonna make you _suffer!_' He let go and grabbed Mario's arms and legs, slowly spreading him apart. 'I'll rip you in half...but only until you _beg_ fer it!' The plumber couldn't breathe, he couldn't fight, he could barely think as his body was being stretched to its limits. Fawful staggered, trying to get up; that kick had been powerful. Doopliss' eyes were widening as he watched what would soon be cold-blooded murder take place. 'G'bye, Super Mario! HYUK HYUK HYUK!'

Grubba didn't see it coming: a small, dark projectile crashed into his stomach, making him released his hold on Mario, who flopped to the ground. Fawful steadied himself and ran up to Mario and Grubba's assailant: Doopliss. 'Stop!' the ghost cried desperately. 'Please, stop it!'

'Wh...hnrgh...' The giant, dark Clubba pulled himself up, wheezing. 'Wh...what in tarnation...?' He stomped his foot and shot an absolutely furious look at his ally. 'What the heck're you doin', you stupid freak n'a sheet? Get outta the way!'

'NO!' Doopliss sputtered. 'No! I won't!'

'You...you're turnin' on us!' Grubba's eyes shone red. 'I can't believe this!'

'Don't you see?' the ghost demanded. 'Dimentio's nuts! And...and...this is all wrong! I just want my world back! I want my steeple back! I want all my Boos back, I want my cable TV back, I want my me-time back, I want my LIFE back!'

'You ignorant lil _snot,_' the Clubba sneered. 'He gave ya power, he gave ya purpose, an' he gave ya a chance at everythin' ya ever wanted, and ya turned hero.' He cracked his knuckles, his lip curled in an angry snarl. 'Yer gonna die along with these two small fries.'

_'Oh Grubba, you're too hasty,'_ sounded a voice from nowhere. Dimentio appeared, maskless, in the room. 'Then again, it's a wonderful trait for a villain.'

'DIMENTIO!' Fawful roared; he leapt up, only to be forced to the ground by Grubba. '_Haaack..._'

'Yes, this was certainly a successful attack, my two dear minions.' He looked at Doopliss, a smile on his face. 'It appears you have my answer. Ahahahaha.'

'Dimentio...' Doopliss muttered. 'You're a monster.'

'So I am told.' His one red eye glinted maliciously. 'Grubba, you've simply been a wonderful ally to have.'

'Work's not done yet,' the minion replied.

'Ah, I beg to differ.' The magician's grin had taken on a sinister sneer as he was shaking his head at his minion. 'You've done more than enough. In fact, you succeeded in the thing I was counting on you to: incapacitate Mario. Fawful, however, is impossible to defeat except by me. Hence, you have outlived your usefulness.'

'...eh?' Grubba looked up. 'What did you jus' say?'

'Ahahahaha!' Dimentio snapped his fingers and both Grubba and Doopliss lurched, clutching their hearts. Fawful squawked as the big Clubba fell on him with all his weight. Clouds of darkness were issuing from the two minions and returning to Dimentio's body. 'Your steadfast loyalty has been excellent Grubba, but I'm afraid someone as greedy as you will never be satisfied with what you receive. And to you, Doopliss, you turncoat, I have nothing more to say.' Grubba was shrinking, returning to his original form, and Fawful could feel the man's weight becoming less and less heavy. 'There is only room for one ruler of a perfect world, and that is I: Dimentio, the Master of Dimensions, the Pleaser of Crowds! To you four, I bid thee: ciao!' Clapping his hands together, the floor of the room disappeared.

Weightlessness took Fawful over and he began to fall. The room ascended out of sight and he was suddenly out in the middle of the Void. Thanking his ability to fly, he shot out from under Grubba and, ignoring the screams of the Clubba and Duplighost as they fell hurtling towards their doom, went back up to the room where Dimentio waited. 'You!' he shouted. 'I have battle!' Energy was already forcing its way up into his body.

'I wouldn't do that if I were you.' The jester smirked; Fawful really hated that smirk. 'You see...poor Mario is falling to his demise as we speak.' The Bean's breath caught in his throat. 'The Void will have him soon. Ah ha ha.'

Fawful looked down, then back at Dimentio, then down again, then back up at Dimentio. Scowling, he turned himself upside-down and shot off to rescue his greatest enemy.

The Void washed over him like a cold wind, the black, destructive tendrils licking at his body. He could see a kind of force field shimmering around his body, protecting him from the swirling mass of darkness. He could see Mario falling like a lifeless doll some ways ahead of him. He went faster; Mario needed to live! He was getting closer...closer...he was closing the distance, Mario's body becoming clearer and clearer. He just needed a few more feet...he stretched out his hand...

He clasped the plumber's arm and took hold of him under his shoulders. The sudden weight in his arms threw him off and they sunk. 'Grrah...red mustache!' he cried, trying to force themselves. 'We will have safety!'

'Fawful...' the red brother groaned. 'Stop...'

'No!' the Bean yelled. 'We will have victory! We—'

'Enough, Fawful. Stop trying.'

These words made Fawful stop. He looked at the man; all the life had leeched out of his eyes as the Void had begun to do its work, his body slowly disintegrating. 'You cannot have death...' Fawful found himself whispering. 'You never have death...'

'I'm wasting away...' Mario breathed. 'There's no way to save me...'

Fawful shook his head. 'No, you—'

'Stop it.' Despite the weakness in his voice, the hero had taken on a stern tone. 'You've got half the Chaos Heart. So does Dimentio. This is your battle. I've done what I can.' He sighed. 'Even if it had gone on like last time...I wouldn't have been able to kill you, Fawful. You don't deserve it...not after all you've done for the worlds.'

Fawful swallowed, his expression grim. 'I...I have...' The man looked so helpless and weak, his eyes dead even though his body was not.

'I just wish...' he whispered. 'I wish...I could see my family again. Luigi...and Peach. My...family...' The Bean could feel Mario getting lighter; he wouldn't exist for much longer.

'...Mario.' It felt strange, addressing the hero by his actual name. '...goodbye.'

Mario nodded. 'Good...bye...haha...haha...ha...' The Void's influence had taken its toll. 'Game...over...' He slipped out of Fawful's arms, falling the rest of the distance and fading entirely.

Fawful hung there, amidst the Void's cruel winds, a solemn bitterness taking over his being. Mario was gone. Gone from anything that existed, gone from everything. He had been trying to end the plumber's life for what seemed like forever, but now that he was gone Fawful could feel sadness in his heart. Tears trickled down his cheeks; if there was anyone he felt deserved to live past it all, it had been Mario. His demise had left a hole in his heart unlike any other.

The boy sniffed and wiped away the salty drops, slowly floating up to the room. He opened door and continued on his way; he met no resistance, heard nothing but his own heart. At last he reached the door he knew contained Dimentio. His last obstacle. He could feel the Purity Heart pulsating from his storage cube; it was all or nothing. Once he stepped through this door, he would either live or die. The worlds would forever perish, or be saved. He took a deep breath, and stepped through.

This was it.

*Heart*

'Oh!' Peach exclaimed. They all followed her gaze; Luigi came and sat down.

'Hey...' he said gloomily. A tremor wracked the afterlife. They blinked as the world seemed to shift like a wave. 'So...this is it.'

'The end of the world,' Blumiere whispered.

'The end of us,' Timpani added.

Suddenly, O'Chunks stood up and looked straight at Nastasia. ''Ey...Nassy,' he said.

Nastasia turned to look at him; her eyes were tired, but still held that stern, icy glare that she seemed to unconsciously make. 'What is it, O'Chunks?' Her voice was more frightening than her look; an irritated cruelty heightened by the stress of the situation.

'Eh...y'see...' O'Chunks' face began to redden. 'I...I jus' wanted teh say...' He swallowed and sighed. 'Ehm...thanks.'

The woman raised an eyebrow. '"Thanks?"'

'Yeah. Fer everythin'. Y've always been there when we needed yeh. So...thanks.'

'Oh...' She cleared her throat and adjusted her glasses. 'Um...you're welcome, O'Chunks.'

'I hate this.' Kamek stood on Flipside Tower, staring straight into the Void in defiance of its power. 'This feeling of helplessness.'

'Likewise,' Nolrem said. 'The world is going to disappear.'

'...do you think Mario and Fawful are still alive?'

The sage sighed. 'Who can tell?'

The old Magikoopa sighed along with him. 'If you woke me up one day telling me I'd be part of a huge adventure to save everything from destruction and that I was going to fade away to nothing at the end of it, I would have turned you into a toad.' He waved his wand.

They both tensed as the world began to unravel; a huge, blank scar had torn itself across the sky. 'The Underwhere and Overthere are ending just as we are,' Nolrem told Kamek. 'Once we disappear, the only ones left will be those in Dimentio's stronghold.'

'Well then we'd better hope the Purity Heart works it's magic,' Kamek replied. 'I don't want to be nothing forever.' He looked up at the sky. 'I really regret...not telling Bowser what I felt towards him before he died.' He sighed sadly. 'He was like a son to me...though I could never say that, he'd have my head.'

'He knows,' Nolrem assured him. 'And I know he thought of you as a father.'

'How can you be sure?'

'A sage just knows these things.'

They returned their gaze to the sky; another gash appeared. 'Goodbye Nolrem,' Kamek said dejectedly. 'Thanks for helping us.'

'And goodbye, Kamek,' the shaman replied. 'You have made an excellent contribution.'

A horrible slicing sound exploded through their eardrums; they had mere seconds left. 'Nastasia,' Blumiere said. 'O'Chunks. Mimi.' They all looked at him. 'You are all my dearest, most cherished people. You are my greatest family. I am so glad I could spend the last moments of my life with you all. Timpani...' He hugged her close. 'I am so glad I married you in the end. My father could never keep us apart.'

'...Count.' Nastasia looked up into his eyes. 'You mean more to me than anything in the world. You saved my life. I'll never leave your side.'

'Yeah,' O'Chunks agreed. 'You're th' best friend a poor man like me could ever 'ave.'

Mimi nodded. 'You've always been there for all of us. Without you...we'd be lonely and hopeless.'

'Count...' Nastasia said again. 'I...I love you. I love you so much.' Her eyes were tearing up; she started as Timpani grabbed her hand tightly, smiling softly.

'We all do,' she told the blue-skinned woman.

'Yeah,' O'Chunks affirmed. 'We all love yeh, Count.'

Mimi had drifted out of the conversation. _Love..._ she thought. _I thought _you_ loved me..._ The world was shifting and swirling like water and she found herself unable to focus. _Dimentio...you...please..._ 'Please...' Her voice was too soft to be heard. 'Don't...please don't...' She slammed her eyes shut as all the emotion she felt threw itself up into her throat. 'DON'T FORGET ME!'

Everything that was shuddered as the dimensions-between-dimensions and the afterlife both winked out of existence.


	40. Chapter 40: Gods

Chapter 40: Gods ~Final Chapter~

*Heart*

The door opened. What awaited Fawful was something he had never seen: Dimentio's throne room. The walls stretched high up, the room a vast expanse of shining stone bricks, expressive tapestries, and red-hot torches. A long, purple and yellow rug went from the door all the way to the other end of the room, up a few stairs, and onto the throne. Many windows lined the walls, showing the ravaging Void surrounding the castle. The room smelled of burning wick, sleek tiles, and clear fabric. Despite the fact that this was Dimentio's throne room, it actually felt welcoming.

'Well well well. You're finally here.' The magician sat on his throne, one leg crossed over the other, his head resting on his fist. He had a smile on his face, the same one he always seemed to have. His mask was hanging from his other hand's finger; he spun it around, the blank face on the mask seeming very strange to Fawful when he was used to it smiling like Dimentio was now. The throne was odd: pure black in colour, just like Castle Bleck had been, a purple and yellow tapestry hanging from it featuring two versions of the jester's mask. One was grinning and one was frowning. A red ribbon wrapped around them both. Dimentio looked at the mask hanging on his finger. 'You know, you've destroyed a lot of these, it seems. Mutilated, melted, torn apart...I wonder if anyone has taken count. I haven't bothered, they're all fakes anyway. Imitations. Even this one. The real one that Rosabella gave me...I haven't worn that in what seems like forever.'

Fawful felt the rage boiling back up in him; he remembered Nastasia, slumped against a tree from his own blaster, Timpani, mutilated by Dimentio's awful magic, O'Chunks, taken by the Chaos Heart's dark power, Mimi, damaged horribly in the Dark Energy Bomb's explosion, Mario, completely erased at the heart of the Void itself...and everyone else who had perished in Dimentio's assault on the castle. Dimentio was a fiend of the highest calibre. Fawful needed to destroy him. 'You...you monster of disgustingness!' he spat, enraged. 'You had the destruction of everything!'

'Ahahahaha!' the magician laughed; he stood up from his throne and slowly walked down the steps. 'Yes...yes I did.' He tossed the mask up into the air and skilfully caught it on his finger. 'How does it feel, Fawful?' His red eye shone, alight with madness. 'How does it feel, to be one of the last two surviving people of everything that ever was? How does it feel, to be one of the two people in the only surviving dimension? How does it feel to know that outside this castle, nothing exists at all? Not a single world. Not Flipside or Flopside. Not the Underwhere or Overthere. _Nothing_. Everything is gone. Everything except my castle, me...and you.' He tossed the mask across the room and it landed at Fawful's feet, staring up at him with cold, blank eyes. 'All this destruction, all of this pain...it was all worth it to further my goal. My goal which I have held onto for over three _thousand_ years. Always searching, waiting for the chance to seize my book, my wonderful, prophetic book. To open the Void. To destroy everything and wipe the slate clean. And now...I'm so _close_. How can you possibly understand that?'

'I do not have care...' the Bean hissed. 'You had the killing of everyone! Of Mario and Luigi! Of _Mimi!_ How can you have a conscious of cleanness?!'

'Ha...ahahaha.' Dimentio leaned back, his heels the only things touching the ground. 'Yes...I killed Mimi. I killed her...hehehe.' He sighed and leaned forward, touching the ground with only his toes. 'That is why...I must continue. For...' He put all his weight back on his feet. 'What if I fail? That won't do. Those sacrifices...will be in vain, won't they? Ahahaha...'

Fawful growled. 'In vein? They had death fighting the one who is _you!_'

'_Exactly!_' Dimentio cackled, a wide smile on his face. 'If I fail now, their deaths will have been for nothing! My effort in killing them will be absolutely meaningless! Mimi's death will have happened without a reason! I can't stop now, or all those who have fallen will have fought me for nothing in the end! Ahahahahahaha!'

The Bean's heart was pounding as he realized just how far gone Dimentio was; he had fought them, murdered them, destroyed entire worlds...and now he was using their deaths as a way to justify his own acts? The thought was absolutely absurd. 'You _will_ have stop,' Fawful told him, a snarl on his lips. 'Your acts of foolishness have no meaning everso of what! Fawful will have the avenging of everyone who no longer has life! You will have goneness! I will have victory!'

Both surges of dark power made the air in the room thick. The two adversaries stared each other down, Fawful's red eyes and Dimentio's red _eye_ shining. 'I notice the veins are stretching across your cheeks now.' He gestured to his own; the thick, black lines had travelled up and were reaching for his ears, curling around his mouth. Fawful automatically felt his own face; he couldn't feel the veins, but he knew they mirrored the magician's. 'The Chaos Heart will soon have a complete grip on our blood, our hearts, even our very souls. When that grip is established...it will be forced to drain our life from our bodies. So you see...' His voice trailed off, but Fawful knew what he would have said: _One of us will have to die._

Fawful walked. Dimentio walked. They both just walked, not tearing their eyes away from the other's. Fawful could feel his dark, jagged cloak billowing behind him as he moved. His foot met Dimentio's mask and crushed it underneath the sole. Dimentio took his hat off his head and tossed it behind him; it lit on fire, the scent of burning fabric filling the air. He clutched the collar of his poncho and wrenched it off, the purple and yellow clothing falling to the floor and meeting the same fate as his hat. Dimentio was garbed in just his black shirt, puffy pants, curled shoes, and gloves. The Bean put a finger on the golden chain connecting his cloak and burned through it; it fell to the ground as well. Things such as those would just be a distraction. Both of their hearts were pounding, in part due to the fear which had taken hold of both of them at the thought of their own deaths, but also because of the link they shared; the Chaos Heart was getting excited, they could tell, sending bursts of energy through their veins with every beat. There was nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. There was no turning back. It was just Fawful and Dimentio. No holds barred. This battle would decide their fates, the fates of the worlds, and the fate of the Chaos Heart. This was the final battle.

'You know,' Dimentio sighed, 'it really is a shame. You and I could have had quite the future together if you had just kept your measly little heart in its place and not gotten too attached. Grubba was a fool and Doopliss turned traitor, but _you_...you had potential.'

Fawful glared menacingly. 'I am Lord Fawful,' he growled, clenching his fists. 'Lord Fawful's only partner is himself!'

'Ahaha...now I know. You could have had the makings of one of the greatest villains in history. However...' Dimentio snapped his fingers, more a staple action than anything else. 'Your existence ends here! The only thing left for me to do is to tear the Chaos Heart out of your chest, then nothing will stand in my way!'

'GRAAAAH!' the Bean screamed; he stuck out his palm and a huge beam of darkness engulfed the jester, tearing up brick, burning carpet, and exposing the black material underneath.

'Ahahahaha!' Dimentio appeared behind him. 'Yes, a duel worthy of my power!'

Fawful whipped around and struck the jester across the face, a pulse of energy knocking him through the air and making him spin. Feeling the power crackling across his fingers, he attacked him with smaller blasts. Dimentio righted himself and teleported at random, only appearing for a moment each time. 'Fink-rat!' the boy growled.

Fawful yelled as the magician appeared in front of him for a moment and punched him in the face. No dark power or anything behind it, just a weak punch, but it irritated the Bean more than anything Dimentio could do at the moment. He adjusted his glasses and blew a wave of power out, throwing the jester through the air. He teleported again and flew circles around Fawful. 'You'll have to work faster than that, Fawful!' he cackled. He snapped his fingers and a hail of dark bullets rained down from the ceiling, peppering the Bean like an army of hornets. The magician, in Fawful's confusion, suddenly slammed down on the ground, a burst of power bumping him up into the air. Dimentio brought his hand back, charged it with darkness, and brought it forward; a roar echoed throughout the room and the Bean was smashed across the hall and into the throne haphazardly, the world spinning. The jester jumped up and threw bolts of darkness at the boy; Fawful screamed as jolts of pain seared through him, the force of the blows pushing him against the surprisingly solid throne, the great seat holding strong. The Bean sagged, gasping; the Chaos Heart's power was nothing you could ever shrug off. '_Honestly,_' the jester said in a mock sigh. 'I thought you would put up more of a fight.'

Anger seared again through the boy; gripping the arms of the chair tightly, he blasted through the air, head butting the magician in mid-laugh and cutting him off with nothing more than sheer velocity. They both hit the ground and Dimentio's choked wheeze intensified as Fawful forced him against the ground. 'YOU!' the boy screeched, punching the older foe. 'HAVE! STUPIDITY! You will have the destruction of utterness!'

Dimentio disappeared and Fawful flailed before he felt ground beneath him. He hopped to his feet and looked around for the jester. _'Brutality!'_ he heard the magician cry. _'Your attacks are vicious, like an assault by an angry bear!'_ His reappearance could be heard. 'Let's see how you handle my favourite trick.' He snapped his fingers and a cloud of darkness surrounded him; a black flash made Fawful cover his eyes and when it cleared there were three jesters. 'Which one is the real me? Ahahahaha!'

'This has oldness!' the Bean shot.

'Oh, I think you'll find there are several differences from my previous illusions, ahaha!' All three Dimentios cackled and teleported.

Fawful immediately drew up a shield around himself, and for good reason; all the jesters reappeared and showered him with blasts. The shield held for a few moments, then disappeared, but the blasts had stopped. 'Gggrah!' the Bean spat, shaking himself. He flew up into the air, spreading his arms apart as energy gathered at his hands. 'Your tricks of patheticness cannot have the defeating of the great Lord Fawful, fink-rat!'

Fawful put his hands in front of him as one of the Dimentios shot a dark projectile at him, blocking the attack and throwing his own blast back. It hit with a resounding boom, the jester spiralling to the ground. The Bean drew in on himself, enclosing himself in a veil of darkness, ready to rush the Dimentio he knew was the original...

A pair of hands gripped him from behind and Fawful gasped hoarsely as all the darkness was sucked out of his attack. 'Oh...' came the jester's voice from behind. 'You didn't think it would be _that_ easy did you?' The magician threw him to the ground, extending black, humming ropes which coiled around his wrists. His heart leapt to and fro as his body was flung this way and that, smashing off the hard stone walls and floor. As he was whipped across the room, he twisted himself around and planted two feet on the ground. Clenching his fists, he threw his arms up, sending a whiplash down the coil and bringing Dimentio up into the air.

'Now, you will have the tasting of your medicine of ownness!'

His attempt was interrupted when two more curling dark tendrils wrapped around his legs and yanked themselves backwards, making the Bean end up on his stomach. 'You'd best watch your back!' the jester laughed from behind him. He felt all four lines tense and suddenly he was off the ground. 'Ahahahahaha!' both Dimentio's cackled. They began to pull and Fawful felt his body straining, his arms and legs being pulled far apart, his muscles stretching beyond their limits. His bones cracked and his skin and muscles tore; the jesters were going to rip him apart!

A moment of intense panic made his heart leap up into his throat. He yelled and flailed, sending ripples down the dark coils. The magician's laughed at his fear and Fawful's teeth clenched, the Chaos Heart pounding like mad. He felt a burst of electric-like power surge out of him and down the wires; he heard the screams of the two Dimentios and the ropes slackened, his body falling and hitting the ground. He flipped up and onto his feet, flinging his arms over his head and bringing one Dimentio soaring overhead and crashing into the other one. The ropes disappeared.

He heard the firing of an attack and jumped out of the way; it exploded off to his right. He spun around and blasted the attacking jester; he screamed and disintegrated in a haze of black particles.

'So!' The Bean declared. 'They are not being illusions, but clones!'

The other two Dimentios got off of themselves and brushed themselves off. 'Indeed,' one said. 'More physical damage can be done.'

'No energy is spent keeping up the illusion either,' the other added.

They both disappeared. Soon after, a hail of bullets shot out from both sides. Fawful put up a barrier, feeling the strain of keeping it up seeping into his body. He smacked his palms together and felt the familiar rush of travelling through dimensions Dimentio's way before reappearing outside of their targeted area. He rushed to the source of one of the bullet storms and was not surprised to feel the impact of hitting another person. Both bullet hails stopped and the jesters reappeared; Fawful dragged the one he had attacked across the ground, making gashes across his back. He felt the heat of a blast coming up and immediately flew off; the real Dimentio vaporized his own lookalike. The Bean flipped behind Dimentio, grabbed his shoulders, and shot towards the ground; they both hit it hard, their bodies battered from impact.

They both warped away from each other, struggling to stand. The black substance slithered across their bodies, repairing all wounds. Both of them were breathing heavily. 'Haah...you...gah...' Dimentio panted, eyes wide with mad rage. 'I'll...RAUGH!' Fawful covered his face from a blanket of black energy. '_THREE THOUSAND YEARS!_' Dimentio screamed. '_I'D SOONER DIE THAN LIVE IN AN IMPERFECT WORLD!_' His eyes shot lightning, intense with ire. '_I'LL RIP THE DAMN HEART OUT THROUGH YOUR THROAT IF I HAVE TO!_'

Fawful barely had time to blink before Dimentio was before him, three millennia's worth of frustration and anger exploding from his face. His fist connected hard with Fawful's chest, right over the heart, dark energy heightening the blow's strength by hundreds. The Bean flew across the room, the Chaos Heart already healing his chest, and crashed into the wall above the door. Fawful saw Dimentio flying at him again and desperately leapt in whichever direction got him out of the magician's way fastest. The shockwave from the impact rolled him across the ground, arms flailing. He got up and took to the skies, ducking and weaving away from Dimentio and his blasts. He conducted a spin in midair and threw an attack at the jester, who caught it in his hands, throwing it back and hitting Fawful with his own attack. A buzz sounded in his eardrums along with the pain over his body and he wavered; the next moment the magician slammed into him like a cannonball, smashing his body against the ground and flying right back up. Covered in darkness, he shot at the Bean again, hitting him multiple times. Fawful gasped and rolled over as Dimentio came at him again, losing contact with the ground for a few seconds after the jester's impact with the floor spewed stones around and burned a hole through the rug.

'_**AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!**_' he cackled insanely. 'That's it,_ DIE, DIE!_'

Fawful kept narrowly getting out of the way. He stood up on one of the mage's retreats and, with a shaking frame, put his hands out and braced himself. Dimentio hit him head-on, the wind roaring as it was forced past the boy. He skidded along the ground, feet planted firmly, ignoring the burning friction. When he stopped moving backwards he threw Dimentio through the air. The jester shot back at him in a frenzy and Fawful swung a fist covered in energy; a _clong!_ reverberated throughout the room and Dimentio was sent in the opposite direction. He hit the wall with his feet and dashed back with just as much force; Fawful blocked again and again, moving back an inch with every strike, his teeth gritted in fury. Dimentio was a senseless murderer; he was going down.

Rage boiled up in Fawful and he knew he wasn't going to defend any longer. He brought his fist forward powerfully, hitting Dimentio away and copying the move; the two mortal projectiles met in the centre of the room, a shockwave of energy shattering windows and cracking bricks. They both bounced off and met again and again, each determined to batter the other until they broke.

On the next strike, both foes lashed out with their fists, freezing in the centre as they struck and blocked with a vicious ferocity. The Chaos Heart had heightened their senses, sharpened their minds, and increased their strength; they attacked with more force and blocked with more skill than either had possessed before this moment. They flew away and back again and again, deadly tremors shaking the castle along with the Void's. Fawful, empowered by his bloodthirsty desire for revenge, struck hard; Dimentio grasped the Bean's fists in his hands, the two snarling ferally. The jester's grip tightened and a pulse of energy made the air around them waver. They called raw power up and screamed, the blast throwing them both away. They skidded along the floor, coming to a halt on their feet and surrounding themselves with magic. Dimentio put his arms out to the side; they flared up, black fire engulfing them. His life-filled eye shone with evil influence, a lust for power and destruction radiating from the angry orb. Floating up into the air he threw a hand forward, black fire spewing across the room. Fawful leapt backwards and saw the spot where the rug had been hit disintegrate, the edges of the hole instantly catching fire. The Bean jumped around, dodging the gouts of black flame as the fire began to spread. He jumped up off the ground, the rug engulfed in a furious blaze, smoke reeling from the thick fabric.

Fawful soared through the air, making his way around the attacks being hurled his way. He looked around, making sure not to crash into anything that might cause him undue pain. He had no idea how to shoot fire from his hands (something that would be nice to learn, admittedly), but he had a better idea. He flipped out, appearing some ways behind Dimentio, who spun around and shot more fire at him. Fawful dropped and flew at a wall, nearly smashing into it. He curled his fingers around a torch on the wall, the metal warm to the touch, and whipped it at the jester. The torch connected with a resounding bang and Dimentio howled in pain, hands pawing at his own face as the flames scorched it. The Chaos Heart had already begun to heal the wound, but the scientist wouldn't stop; he ripped the torches off the walls, throwing them at his opponent and not caring whether or not he actually hit him. The magician yelled and knocked the next burning projectile out of the way, flying at Fawful. The Bean cried out in surprise and put his hand out in front of him, preparing to shoot a blast, but he wasn't fast enough and Dimentio sent them both crashing through a window. The glass shattered to pieces and they left the room to burn.

The Void wailed all around them, an all-encompassing gale of noise. Their bodies suddenly shimmered as their respective Chaos Heart halves protected them from the world destroyer's wrath, the Void's dark tendrils reeling off them harmlessly. The Heart also healed their glass cut wounds, sealing up their gashes and pushing out the glass shards.

Fawful yelped as a block of black magic struck him in the side, sending him spinning. He steadied himself and threw his own projectile; his and Dimentio's new attack collided, rendering each other useless. The Bean slammed into the magician with all the force he could muster, smashing him against a wall. Dimentio teleported and threw a wave of small black shots at him, which Fawful simply flew through and countered with two orbs of magic, then grabbed Dimentio and threw him through another window of the castle. The window's remains and much of the space around it were destroyed as a large beam exploded out of the castle. The inventor flew dodged the blast, only to be attacked by another not too far away from the first. Fawful took off, barely avoiding the blasts that tore holes in the stone walls. He flew up and landed on the castle's roof, but Dimentio's magic ripped holes in that too, dotting the top of the castle with blotchy fissures and spitting out energy beams like supernatural geysers. The Pleaser of Crowds himself flew through the roof, sending bricks flying, and landed to face Fawful.

The two of them were tiring, and they both knew it. Fatigue and dizziness assaulted their bodies and minds like a disease and they gasped for breath, sweat running down their faces. 'I...I can't...lose to you...' Dimentio huffed.

'I...I must...have victory...' Fawful panted. 'For...for Mimi...'

Anger was welling up in their chests again, but their bodies lacked the energy to express it. A tremor shook the castle and shook them, their protected bodies struggling to keep their footing. It was just them at the end of the worlds, and their battle was running its course.

They mustered all the power and determination they had and ran at each other, dark energy oozing from their forms. Fawful jumped up before the contact, bridging the height gap between them, and they slammed their fists together, energy crackling. Fawful hit the ground and ducked from one of Dimentio's fists, bringing his whole body into a powerful head butt to the stomach. The jester gave a strangled gasp and fell back, catching himself in midair before he hit the ground and spinning his entire body around, cuffing Fawful across the face with a balled fist. The Bean fell over and pulled himself up quickly to his feet, launching himself back into their fray. They threw punches and Dimentio, the taller of the two, kicked. Despite their best efforts, their lack of any physical strength or melee fighting prowess showed; their strikes lacked any form. Fawful clenched his fists after another fist hit the side of his head and staggered back. He took a deep breath and willed energy to come up to the surface. Thoughts of everything Dimentio had destroyed came to his mind: his home, his future, his allies, his chance of reuniting with Cackletta, and Mimi, the first girl he had ever given his heart to.

Fawful screamed and threw a powerful punch, throwing Dimentio back from the Chaos Heart's force. Instantly energy drained from his body and his vision blurred, his heart pounding heavily.

_'Your time is almost up,'_ the Chaos Heart stated with anxiety; once Fawful and Dimentio rotted away, the Chaos Heart would disappear. Then there really would be nothing left at all.

The magician pulled himself up to his feet and swayed blearily. 'Unnngh...' he groaned, holding his head. Their brains were pounding and as they looked at each other they could see that they were going to fade soon; the veins had made their way up their entire heads and stopped up at the top, pulsating with a new kind of energy: theirs. They were sick to their stomachs and their skin had turned pale.

They held themselves still and fought once more, holding onto their goals, their hopes, and their dreams. Dreams of their own perfect world; one without sin or one with everything that had been before. Fawful lashed out and scratched with his nails, making a cut across his face that for once didn't heal. Black blood trickled out of it, an evil, inhuman substance that pumped through both of their bodies. Dimentio leapt forward and they both went down, rolling across the stone ground. The Bean flailed all of his limbs, battering the magician with a flurry of fists and feet; Dimentio's response was to bring a fist down on Fawful's face, breaking his nose with an audible _snap!_ The boy yelled and threw Dimentio off of him with the Chaos Heart's strength, feeling the effects of the Heart on his body again. His thick blood ran down his cheeks and chin and got into his mouth; it tasted completely different than normal blood. Whereas blood normally gave a metallic taste, this substance that the Chaos Heart had given them tasted bitter and strong.

Dimentio grabbed Fawful by the collar and lifted him up, throwing an open palm against his face and letting out a wave of energy. He wobbled, barely able to stand. Fawful felt weaker than he ever had in his life; even moving, blinking, and breathing were chores and his very soul felt weighed down by thousands of tonnes. Even still, they both got up and kept going. Dimentio's ultimate dream of a perfect world, Fawful's desire for revenge and the revival of all he had lost; their goals were the only things in their minds, the only things that kept them going. They attacked with a desperation they thought they never knew they had, neither willing to give in to the other. They knew they had to win, no matter what.

They crumpled, lying on the ground; it was too much. It was too hard to move, to even exist. They could feel their life slipping away and their heartbeats slowing. Even the Chaos Heart, normally a source of snide remarks and condescending comments, could be heard by both of them. It wasn't so much gasping as the Heart had no lungs, but they could somehow hear its exhaustion without it making a sound. Cuts, scrapes, and other wounds covered their bodies, the Heart unable to do a thing to heal them anymore.

'H-how...?' Dimentio had spoken. 'I c-can't...m-move...I need help...somebody h-help me...wh-what do I...my perfect...'

Fawful couldn't even speak. His entire life was flashing before his eyes, from birth right up to this very moment. In the end he just couldn't do it. He couldn't make it in time. Everybody who had perished fighting against Dimentio and his insane goal had fought for nothing. Everything would be gone, everyone would be gone, and the Void would be the only thing that existed at all. Not even the Chaos Heart would exist. Nothing but a massless black hole reaching out for something to consume yet consuming nothing.

_'Fawful...'_

Utter sorrow devoured Fawful's heart as he saw Mimi in his mind clear as day, broken in body and spirit, damaged to the point of no return.

_'I...I need...to...a-ask...'_

Dimentio had done so much evil.

_'Is it wrong...that I...still love him...?'_

All in the name of his perfect world, he had done so much evil.

_'Dimen...tio...'_

Ignoring the paradise he could have had. Ignoring all the good and overstating all the bad. He had done too much. He was a demon. A demon who needed to be stopped.

_'I...still love...Dim...en...'_

Fawful tensed, his muscles screaming out in pain from even the slightest movement.

_I have s-something..._

He planted his palms on the ground, yelling through his teeth as he pushed his body up and brought his knees to rest on the ground.

_Something which Dimentio does not..._

He slowly got up to his feet and fought against their weakness. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his Spacial Matter Scrambling Device, the metal cube like ice against his sensitive, now pale white skin.

_People to have care for._

He pressed a few buttons and a flash of light shone; he put it away. The Purity Heart floated there in all its golden glory.

Instantly they both felt the Chaos Heart cry out in horror and Fawful moved away from the Purity Heart on shaky legs, Dimentio moaning in pain. The Bean felt excitement in his chest and his heart flipped; Dimentio was done for. He could still stand. He had the Purity Heart. He had won.

It was over.

'I have...victory...' Fawful said weakly. 'I have...win...' He fixed his eyes on the glowing, heart-shaped artefact before him. 'Purity Heart...' he huffed. 'Go!' A wicked pleasure was taking form in Fawful as he imagined the pain Dimentio would go through. 'Have go! Defeat Dimentio!' He willed it with all his might to overtake the magician, to purge him of the Chaos Heart and render him utterly defenceless.

Nothing happened. The Purity Heart just floated there, not moving.

'GO!' Fawful screamed, his chest aching from his lung work. 'ATTACK! DESTROY DIMENTIO!' What was going on?! They had created a Purity Heart! They had! Why wasn't it _working?!_ Had all of their work been for nothing?!

Fawful's attention was drawn by a sound: laughter. A barely noticeable, weak, dead laugh that sounded nothing like anything the Bean had heard before. 'Ah...ha...ha...haaa...' Dimentio was on the ground, wheezing and laughing as if at a both cruel, ironic joke and straight at Death's face at once. 'Useless...' he croaked. 'Everything...useless...' He tilted his head to look at Fawful. 'It's not meant...to be used...like that...' He laughed that same dead laugh again. 'Love...you need...love...'

The boy's mouth ran dry; no matter what happened, he was fuelled by hatred for Dimentio. The Purity Heart would never work.

Suddenly, a pair of hands gripped his throat from behind and lifted him up off the ground. Fawful let out a strangled gasp and hung limp. '...Valex,' the jester said faintly.

The Bean's mind was reeling. He had killed Valex! The Inverse had died in the Mushroom World! He had been sent hurtling towards a cliff and...

_...no..._

_NO!_

'Master Dimentio,' Valex said grimly. The Void shook the world again; chunks of stone and glass were peeling off of the castle, revealing the black walls of the former Castle Bleck beneath. The entire castle was breaking off into particles, the last remaining structure in the world being eaten away by the thing it had been housed in for so long. The Void had grown too large and too strong for the castle to be unaffected. 'The Chaos Heart is yours.' A smile began to slowly creep across Dimentio's face, his eyes widening. 'Farewell. I give my life for you.'

Valex closed his eyes and melted away into pure energy, pushing himself into Fawful's back. The Bean hung in the air and gasped as what felt like a ice cold gust of wind pour into his body from behind, pushing against the Chaos Heart in his body and finally forcing it right out of his chest. Half of the Chaos Heart hung in the air, shimmering and twitching, fighting to keep itself stable and material.

Fawful fell to the ground and his barrier against the Void disappeared. He twitched and spasmed as lightning shot through his veins. He rolled over on his front and vomited, a thick black sludge mixed in with the bile. He coughed and sputtered, the blood in his veins thinning and losing its black colour. The lines that snaked their way across his body began to fade. He vomited again, this time with less sludge. Hacking, tears fell from his eyes at the agony. One more issue of bodily fluid came up his throat and out his mouth. The veins had faded completely, but the thick liquid that had prevented him from losing enough to die was gone. His wounds leaked red once more, his broken nose giving him a chance to experience the metallic taste of blood. The weak, soulless feeling had left him and the weak feeling of body damage had taken its place. He screamed into the air, knowing that the last moments of his life were using themselves up.

Dimentio, still weak, slowly extended an arm up, reaching for the half of the Chaos Heart he didn't possess. The Heart-half floated towards him, the only thing with dark energy in the vicinity. 'Yes...' the magician breathed. He closed his fist around the Heart, the energy pouring down his arm into his chest and making his black veins glow. 'YES!' He was lifted up into the air, the spidery marks all over his form disappearing and the dark blue colour of his skin flowing back into his cheeks. The heart-shaped marks over Fawful's and Dimentio's chests vanished.

The Chaos Heart was whole once more.

The Charming Magician Dimentio breathed in deeply and he fell back down to the ground, revelling in his ability to stand. It felt so good to finally see his efforts come to fruition. The Chaos Heart's full power hummed in his body. He looked down at the pitiful body of the Beanish boy Fawful, who gasped and bled, lying in his own vomit, blood and tears. 'Such a pitiful sight,' Dimentio sighed with a smile. 'Truly befitting a defeated, confused little wretch like you, Fawful.' The Purity Heart bobbed in the air and fell to the ground, the Void draining its supply of power and not enough love being felt to make more. Castle Dimentio was being destroyed, the towers falling and the walls crumbling. 'Now that the Chaos Heart is mine and my opposition has been crushed, I see no reason to remain here.' A wicked grin was spread across his face. 'My perfect world _will_ be created. Don't worry though; I shall tell tales of the foolish little boy who dared oppose the great god Dimentio...and who met a fate worse than death in the process.' He waved with his fingers, snide conceit directed at Fawful. 'Farewell, Fawful, my partner-turned-foe. It was nice working with you.' He floated up into the air. 'Ciao~!'

Dimentio took off towards the centre of the Void, not bothering to look back as the castle completely disappeared, sending Fawful and the Purity Heart falling to their dooms.

Fawful

Fawful fell, the wisps curling around his body burning at the touch, eating away at his skin, and he suddenly knew exactly what was going through Mario's head as he dropped like a stone to his demise. Like everything was hopeless. Like everything you had done in life had been for nothing. Like you were worthless in the end. When you were literally falling towards nonexistence along with the rest of absolutely everything, that claim didn't seem like too much of a stretch.

As Fawful fell, the various liquids covering his body spraying off of him as he hurtled downwards, he really thought about his life. As his body melted away, he really reflected on the things he had done and not done. As he did this, he realized something incredibly important:

He had _grown_.

Not physically. Not as a villain or a fighter, but as a mortal being. For his entire life he had been raised to be a villain, to do the whim of Cackletta and to be moulded into the model villain that would make her proud. A cold-hearted, ruthless individual who knew his goals and would stop at nothing to obtain them, whatever they were. That was the impression he had got from her. Looking back on things, he wondered if he had gotten it right. She _had_ been a very strict person and teacher, but she was just as much a mother to him as a teacher, giving him tender care when necessary and loving him with all her heart. Everyone he had ever met had been judged by Fawful instantly by their initial actions. Mario and Luigi had been mortal enemies of his from the get-go because they opposed Cackletta, but after spending time with them doing what they did he realized that it really wasn't as black-and-white as he had thought it was.

A warmth in his heart. He could feel it, deep down. Amidst all the grief and despair he felt there was that small, glowing light in his heart. A light that contained the good memories of all the things that had happened to him, all the people he had met. He wrapped himself around it, hugging at it and holding it as tightly as he could.

Cackletta. His mentor and mother and a constant source of love and affection during a confusing and dangerous part of his life.

Princess Peach. An amazingly kind monarch with a powerful heart and mind, even if he didn't like her as a person.

Even Mario and Luigi. The two brothers who had made his life a living Underwhere had shown him that they were just fighting for what they wanted to protect, something he knew he could relate to now.

And Mimi. The girl who occupied a special place in his heart...and who he could never have because she would always love another. The person he could never hate.

He loved them all. He hated them before but now he knew the truth. He knew that even the Mario Brothers, his worst enemies, were also his greatest friends. People he trusted and people who trusted him despite past battles. These people all deserved spots in his heart. The spark grew into a flame, surrounding him with warmth and love. He knew he was going to die, to disappear, to spend the rest of time in an eternal non-existence. But he would perish with his favourite people in mind. He would die thinking of the people who had touched his heart. Tears fell from his eyes and up into the air, but not tears of grief; these were tears of an entirely different kind.

He closed his eyes and accepted his fate, not noticing the growing light of the Purity Heart falling very close to him.

Dimentio

Dimentio flew as fast as he could, the sound of the massive Void falling on deaf ears. He had done it. He had finally done it. The Chaos Heart was his. Everyone was gone except him. The Purity Heart had been completely useless. All the worlds had been erased. This was the moment he had been fighting for for his whole, long life, and now that it was here his heart was practically leaping in his chest, filling him with excitement. All the people he had killed, all the worlds that had met their ends...it was worth it. It was all worth it.

_'And so all has ended!'_ the Chaos Heart laughed in his head, its voice powerful and whole in his head.

'And so all shall begin anew...' Dimentio breathed, his lips trembling with exhilaration.

_'You know Dimentio, I truly am astounded.'_ What sounded like a sigh of relief sounded in the jester's head. _'I was honestly certain I would die. If it wasn't for that abomination you created...'_

Dimentio's ever-present grin widened even more. 'Valex was the greatest tool I had.'

He spotted something in the distance. A small white dot, contrasting the infinite darkness that swirled endlessly. _'So there it is.'_ The Chaos Heart, despite being the being directly related to the Void, sounded incredibly excited. _'The centre of the Void.'_

As the magician neared it what he saw made him do a double-take in his mind: it was a gigantic, pure white heart, significantly larger than his body. He stopped in front of it and stared. 'This is the centre of the Void?'

_'Yes. The "heart," you could say.'_

'The heart of the Void. Ahahahaha.' He extended a hand and touched it, then quickly withdrew it, shocked. 'What...?!' Quizzical, he did it again and snapped his hand back again. 'This thing...' It was completely alien. He felt no energy from it at all, even though the rest of the Void gave off an empty kind of dark power. When he touched it...it was an indescribable sensation. It was complete nothingness. No, it was more than that. A world destroyed by the Void was complete nothingness. This...it was the complete absence of everything. Even nothingness didn't exist inside the gigantic heart.

_'Existence is null at the heart of the Void,'_ the Chaos Heart told him. _'Anything that joins it will cease to be in a way which even the Void's destruction of worlds cannot replicate. Anything, with only one exception.'_

'The Chaos Heart...ahaha...!' Dimentio was shaking. The Chaos Heart rested in his body, and to use it and the Void all he had to do was step into this heart.

That was exactly what he did.

His body entered the Void's core and instantly disappeared, becoming nothing. His mind reeled for a split second before the Chaos Heart's energy shielded him, infusing both consciousnesses. Dimentio and the Chaos Heart became one, the joined soul dissolving, spreading throughout the core. Excitement and euphoria pulsed through the consciousness, sending ripples throughout the entire Void.

_I am the Void,_ the consciousness thought.

The Void flexed its being, shifting and waving. The empty darkness moved and swayed as a sentient being.

_I am existence._

The heart began to beat rhythmically, the powerful thumping making the Void pick up speed.

_I am non-existence._

The Void churned and began to _be_, becoming a mix between something and nothing.

_I am everything._

The Void suddenly remembered its mission: a world of complete perfection. It filled its mind with a vivid clarity; it could feel the wind against its skin and the smell of grass and trees filling its nostrils.

_My perfect world,_ the consciousness thought, becoming separate from the swirling darkness again. _My greatest desire._

The consciousness spread its influence over the whole Void and began to make it move. It whirled and passed through itself, weaving into something new. It slowly bridged the gap between something and nothing, becoming gaseous and heavy with the weight of matter and antimatter. The consciousness struggled with the sudden effort involved in moving what used to be the Void, but pressed on. _My perfect world..._ It could see the entire dimension; it was beautiful. A world without suffering...

Suddenly, the consciousness was thrown around itself. A blast of light engulfed it and it screamed, pain coursing through it as a voice sounded in the heart of nothing.

_DIMENTIO!_ The voice was high pitched and horribly familiar. Memories of a green boy flashed through his mind and the consciousness desperately tried to figure out what they meant, who they belonged to.

The new consciousness, filled with energy radiating light and love of the highest calibre, spread itself out through the heart as well, mixing with the old one powered by darkness and negativity. They both shifted, the consciousnesses repelling and attracting each other at the same time, combining and separating, becoming one and becoming two. Confusion and chaos went through their minds and they panicked; they needed to know what they were!

At the same time, the Void was still changing. Thoughts of a perfect world still occupied the consciousness but they changed and altered themselves in the chaos. It couldn't keep a clear vision.

_Who am I?_ it thought desperately.

_I am..._

_Chaos._

_Purity._

_Dimentio._

_Fawful._

_I am..._

_N-no!_ The Void shuddered and groaned with the tension as its core warred with itself. The Purity Heart, the Chaos Heart, Fawful, and Dimentio all waged a brutal battle of the mind and spirit and the Void kept on changing at will.

_I am Dimentio!_ _Dimentio Dimentio Dimentio! _one consciousness thought angrily. _A perfect world is mine to rule! I am a god! A god! I...I need to..._ The warring forces of light and darkness were battering his mind and he couldn't think straight.

_Dimentio!_ another one thought. _You will have lose! Lose! LOSE!_

The Chaos Heart screamed and hollered in agony, the sentient heart feeling everything that its opposite radiated.

Pain stabbed at the two former mortals again and again, the battle of the Chaos and Purity Hearts attacking their very souls. It was too much, too much to handle...

_**AAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGGHHHH HH!**_

A splitting agony tore and ripped them and they spun out of control. They lost all feeling and were thrown, their souls spiralling wildly as they flew out into the unforgiving depths of the changing Void.

His mind was a haze. His head felt like it was split open, throbbing and sending pain through his whole body.

His...body?

Dimentio rolled over and groaned, suddenly aware that he could move. His body was twitching and he let out small, coughing rasps of breath. He couldn't stand it. Even the ground and wind was giving him pain.

...ground? Wind?

His eyes snapped open and he shut them quickly as the bright light of the sun flashed through his retinas. He moaned, rolling over onto his stomach and feeling the grass touch his cheek. He opened his eyes again, away from the sun, to see that what he was lying on was indeed grass. He stood up and squinted, his knees weak and shaky. His vision was blurred and he was seeing double.

'Where...? Ungh...'

He gripped his head, struggling to make sense of all this. Where was he? He had to remember. The last thing that had happened was...

His heart skipped a beat. The Void. He had controlled it. He had used it and shaped it and...

_Did I...? No...it's not possible..._

A sound; someone was approaching. He turned and wobbled on his feet; someone who looked remarkably human looked at him nervously. A man. 'Excuse me...' he said, uncertain as to what he should say.

'...who are you?' Dimentio asked. He couldn't even see the man clearly, his body was so out of it.

'I don't...' The man looked down at his feet, then looked back up. 'Who are you?'

'I'm...' The magician tried to focus, but it was impossible. 'Dimentio.'

A gasp came from the man and he knelt on the ground. 'I...I'm sorry, forgive me!' he cried.

'Wha...huh?!' Out of everything he remembered, he had never witnessed anything like this. 'What are you doing?'

'My king, I had no idea, I...'

'King? I'm not...'

He stopped. Things began to piece themselves together. The Void, the heart of nothingness, that shifting, swirling mass of matter that had been connected to him. All of that meant...it meant...

Dimentio stopped breathing and stared wide-eyed at the man. His heart was pounding, excitement welling up in him as he finally realized what he had done.

'I...I've done it...' he whispered shakily. 'I created...I created...it's...'

The man looked up at him, crawling backwards as a huge smile spread across the jester's face. 'My lord...?' he asked, his voice small.

'Aha...ahahaha...ahahahahahaha...' He couldn't believe it. Three thousand years. 'HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! _**AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!**_' He let all of his emotions out in gale of laughter; everything he had fought for was realized. '_I'VE DONE IT!_' he screamed. '_A PERFECT WORLD! A PERFECT WORLD IS MINE! I AM A GOD! __**A GOD!**__ AHAHAHAHAHAHA!_'

He let his head tilt down and giggled, then looked at the man on the ground. 'Yes,' he said to him. 'I am Dimentio, your creator. Now stand up.'

The man stood up on command, shaking. Dimentio didn't know if that was because he was afraid of him or if the man didn't have full control of his body yet. Either way, the world had begun abruptly, as if in the middle of its life. That suited him. 'Yes, your Highness,' he said devotedly.

'Ahahaha.' Dimentio's excitement still went on and he giggled again. 'This is my world.' He looked off into the distance. 'My castle.'

'...yes, your Highness?'

He turned to look at the man, his eyes shining with victorious pride. 'Take me there.'

**The End...**

_Next: __Pure Chaos_


End file.
